The Carnival of Dolls
by SparklyLarry
Summary: "If everything depends on the equivalent exchange, then cannot one's destiny be exchanged for another's...?" Now, that the author of these words has appeared at the threshold of Hughes' house almost 15 years later, does Roy remember his old friend, who's come with a birthday present not just for little Elysia, but Edward Elric as well... looking for the Stone... EdxOC AlxWin [ AU ]
1. Chapter 1: Of Copper and Bronze

**The Carnival of Dolls**

_by SparklyLarry_

Disclaimer: I don't own FMA... What a surprise...)

_"If everything depends on the equivalent exchange, then cannot one's destiny be exchanged for another's...?"_  
_Now, that the author of these words has appeared at the threshold of Hughes' house almost 15 years later, does Roy remember his old friend, who's come with a birthday present not just for little Elysia, but Edward Elric as well..._  
_EdxOC AlxWin [ AU ]_

Chapter One

**Of Copper and Bronze**

_They may change their colors on the surface due to years and water, but they always remain the same within._

"... Tiny grey feathers were swiftly floating through the opened window, making him feel alone and abandoned. He had failed to catch the Sun, to touch the Moon or grasp the Lightning. There was nothing else to do but sit in front of the old window and look at the River, whose ringing laughter was forcing memories of his blighted dreams and goals. On a dusted windowsill stood a brass candlestick with a lonely wax candle, though there were no spurts of fire anymore. The Flame was done warning him and had no intention of talking to him any time soon. He tried to find comfort in the Sea, but azure waves stayed immune to his tears. He wished he could confide in his closest friend, the Maple, but he was too far away. That is when Loneliness revealed herself to the Petrel. No matter how hard he was fighting against her chilling embrace, the deceptively soft hands were gradually twisting around his soul...

... Well... Please, remind me again... Why am I reading this damn fairy tale for two hours now!?" Ed's patience got the best of him. No way he would read another word from the stupid book.

Smack.

"Don't you dare call my daughter's favourite story 'this damn fairy tale'!" Hughes cried indignantly, giving him another clip on the back of the head. Ed huffily rugged a sore place with his left hand, throwing daggers at the older man.

"Hey! That's my birthday, so..." Edward was going to make a decent argument against reading the fai... whatever kind of fiction it was, but Hughes didn't allow him to finish.

"Sorry, Ed! Elicia is the one who is five today! Her birthday is far more important! It's not every day you are turning five!" Maes' eyes were literally sparkling with glee and pride.

"As if it's every day I turn seventeen!" Ed's grump remark was left unnoticed, as the man continued nonchalantly.

"And she wants her best friends to read her favourite books! You aren't going to tell me you are not her best friend, are you? Surely, you don't want to upset such a sweet girl on her fifth birthday! Not even a cold-hearted man can possibly imagine hurting this wonderful, cute, lovely and completely adorable child! Have you noticed her pink cheeks? My big girl is using rouge for the first time! You couldn't have possibly missed it, could you? This great event..."

"I get it, I get it!" raising both hands in surrender, Ed hurried to stop the unstoppable torrent of a Daddy's ramble. _Just a great birthday party!_ - he thought grudgingly to himself, looking sullenly at Al, who chuckled nervously, all along doing his best to avoid a brother's death glare. "Just give me already this stup..."

Smack.

"Ug-huh... Really, Brother... The book isn't all that bad..." Al's attempt to become a peacemaker did nothing but amplified Ed's annoyance and, unfortunately, Maes' indignation. "I-I mean, there are even moments I wish I could cry..."

"Yeah-yeah... Since when are you so fond of drama?" Edward mocked his younger brother, making him squirm even more. _Right, as if our life isn't dramatic at all..._ He didn't say it aloud, of course, though the words hung in the air. So many years had passed... They still had neither the stone, nor the bodies. Only tormented minds. _I've become even older and what's the point?! I have achieved nothing in the last five or so years, excepting the fact that now the Military has a new dog to command around!_ However, somebody simply missed the moment and went on with his ramblings.

"What is the whole fuss about, Fullmetal?" _Speak of the devil..._ The Colonel with a steaming cup and a saucer in one hand appeared just behind the Hughes' back, who, though, was either too busy defending his fairy-tale or simply decided to ignore the man.

"That's a genius piece of literature, boys! Something every respected alchemist should know by heart!" All of a sudden Hughes dropped his high-pitched voice and was whispering seriously, making both brothers leave the inner world of their thoughts. "Believe it or not, but the Colonel himself has read it several times." At last, something worth listening to! The sentence immediately picked up the Elric's interest and caused a certain someone choke over his hot drink. An evil smirk appeared on the young alchemist's face. _Well, well... Maybe, I still have a chance of getting a lovely present..._ he thought maliciously, secretly watching flushed Mustang wipe his blue uniform restlessly.

"Oh, really? I would never have thought that the Colonel was keen on reading girlish fairy tales." Ed snickered, all the while enjoying the view of the very embarrassed and furious Flame Alchemist... who liked girlish stories, that's it... _To think of it, the party is getting more interesting._

"Sure!" still being unaware of a seething friend behind him, Hughes specified. "Actually, we reread it several times! I can remember the time when we argued about who would quote the coolest part of a love declaration to a girlfriend! Man... I've learnt twenty two pages by heart precisely! My sweet Gracia was listening for about half an hour!"

"I wonder, how many chapters has Mustang learnt?" false innocence was evident in Ed's question. Even Al was hardly suppressing a laugh, as the Flame Alchemist was literally becoming a torch, blazing with impotent rage.

"Can't say... Five or six..."

"Four lines. No more, no less." came a short remark from behind Hughes' back. Caught by surprise, Maes put a wide smile over his face, acting as if Roy's dark aura had no effect on him.

"What about a girlfriend?" Al pried, and Ed could imagine his eyes glittering hopefully. That, he couldn't deny, was the question of the day.

"Have no doubts, I produced a special impression on..." Mustang started all self-confident in a high voice only to be interrupted with a burst of laugh.

"Do you mean that girlfriend of yours from a mirror? Wow, I do remember you talking to her for hours and hours without end! 'Cause I surely haven't seen any..." and so, the happy birthday party began. The scene in front of Edward was probably the best present he had received in recent years. Somehow, a friendly squabble, irritated but amused Gracia, who was trying to make a new hairstyle for overexcited Elysia, hopelessly sighing Hawkeye with a cup of coffee at her lips and a chuckling younger brother... who was a meter higher than him on his seventeenth birthday!... created an amiable atmosphere. A warm feeling was filling Edward's heart, something he hadn't had a chance to feel for who knows how long. It was just... nice.

Ed came up to a window; rain drops were merrily playing with silver puddles beyond a glass surface. He watched them for a while, than focused an amber gaze on his own reflexion. It was quite surprising to find a peaceful expression on his face. _Such a grey morning and yet it promises a colorful day_! His optimistic thoughts were interrupted by a sudden flick of light outside that immediately caught the young alchemist's attention. A lonely silhouette was standing hunched in the middle of the road, a damp coat sticking to his evidently exhausted legs. Edward watched with a raised brow as a stranger pulled a piece of some paper out of his pocket only to throw it away; mocking rain drops turned the thing into a mess in less than a heart beat. A man looked around again and than, to Ed's astonishment, headed right for a door of Hughes' house. A moment later he was knocking. In a strange way... _Is he tapping out some melody? Well, that's weird!_

"Ah!" Gracia's exclamation reached Ed's ears. "Why do guests always choose the least convenient moment to arrive?"

The woman was standing behind Elicia's back, her hands tangled in long blond locks. The look of utter despair written all over her face. _Guess she has a tough time with this birthday hairstyle..._

"Who's coming!? Who's coming!" the girl cried excitedly, clapping her hands and ruining her mother's hard work. "More guests, more gifts!"

"Elysia, dear! Try to stay motionless!" Gracia moaned, vainly trying to hold several thick braids with her fingers.

Seeing that Mustang and Maes were too engrossed with their heated argument and Hawkeye and Al were just about to interfere, Ed moved away from the window.

"No problems, ma'am, I'll get the door!" he called helpfully, receiving an appreciative look.

"Thank you, Edward! You are a hairstyle's savior! Now, if there is still anything left to save..."  
Chuckling, Ed made his way to the door, wondering who the guest was. All in all, Maes refused to reveal a list of guests, claiming it was a surprise for everyone. _Yeah, a really BIG surprise: Mustang and his team, Winry and Al._ Had he not seen the man outside, he would have thought it was Winry. _By the way, where the hell is she? It's long time she should have arrived! Urg, she is even less punctual than the guy behind the door, whoever he is!_

A little bit irritated at the others' attitude to his birthday... _It's my seventeenth birthday, dammit! Instead of a present from my childhood friend, the first thing I get is an annoying brat's remark "I believe you're becoming not that short with coming years, Fullmetal!"..._ Ed thrust the door open. The amiable atmosphere from before had mysteriously vanished.

"Five seconds to explain your coming late or you're going to fly over that roof!" Ed yelled from a threshold, incinerating a black figure in front of him with a furious look. _Sorry, pal. I'm kind of pissed off right now and I really need to rehearse my meeting with Winry._

"So, I see I have succeeded in finding the right house." came a polite reply. The stranger threw off a wide hood to reveal a glittering bald head with a violet ribbon tied around it just an inch higher than his thin black brows. A pleasant smile stretched pale lips. "You should have taken a lot after your mother."

Taken aback, Ed stared at the stranger with a dubious look, his mouth dropped.

"But, of course, the character is your father's."

That's it. The first impression's the most lasting. It took just six seconds to make Ed hate this guy. _A record time!_

Bam.

"Don't you tell me this "you're like your daddy" crap, Baldy!" the young alchemist bawled out, seething and fuming like a tea pot; his eyes throwing lightnings and teeth ready to reap the guy to pieces. "Now call me a pipsqueak so I have an excuse to kick you out of here!"

"My apologies, boy, easy now!" the man's chuckle was a good-natured one, though it did nothing to calm Ed down. If anything, the courteous behaviour and the manner to speak slowly made him hate the stranger even more. "Sorry, I could not help myself. Every time I was late, your father's reaction was exactly the same. Oh... Roy is too impatient for his own good."

All Edward's rage was unexpectedly swept away by confusion.

"...Roy?" The stranger closed his dark ash eyes and smiled nicely at Ed's lost expression.

"I am Sokol Jarris. A great pleasure to meet..." he didn't finish his greetings, politely waiting for the young alchemist's introduction. An elegant hand in a violet glove was extended.

Edward stood in stupor. One, two, three... four seconds and his irritation was gradually recovering after a wave of shock. Irritation was slowly flowing through his body like a boiling oil, turning into a fiery fury. Fury was going to become a big explosive. The man, it seemed, had no idea of an effect his words were producing and he definitely was not aware of repercussions, for he continued nonchalantly.

"Well, I remember Roy fumbling when we tried to get him acquainted with a lovely lady. Sons must always erase their father's mistakes, boy. Try to be more eloquent." the damn Jerris freak advised with the same freaky benevolent smile. At last, something just broke with a nasty crunch inside Ed's mind.

"The hell, are you talking about Mustang?!" the young alchemist snapped, only to receive a disapproving look from the Sokol guy, who shook his head and sighed sadly.

"I see, despite you taking after your mother, this temper is Roy's heritage..." the guest reached the limit. Tick-tock... Explosion.

"Don't you call this brat my father!" What used to be fury was at that moment beyond any known forms of anger. _Man, I will kick him outta here if he says even one more...!_

"So, Roy is that bad, isn't he? Sorry to say, but I am not surprised you believe your father to be terrible, however I would like to assure you..." before anymore crap could come out of the mouth, Ed rushed forward, aiming at the stranger's front. He noticed a spark flickering in the man's ash eye before the guest calmly stepped aside. Automail fist flew just in front of a bald head of his.

"I have a terrible daddy, all right!" he shouted, pissed off even more now that some freak dodged his attack as if he were nothing but a fly. "Though, no way it is Mustang, dammit! If he were my daddy, I would have drowned myself in milk long ago!" the young alchemist had just readied himself for another fierce blow to wipe that annoyingly benevolent expression away. To make matters worse, the freak did not appear to be worried in the least. If anything, he was... curious? Curiosity was another thing Ed detested in the guy. _Man, he has headed the list of brats I hate in a record time!_

"Urg... Brother? You alright?" Al's concerned voice literally stopped him in a mid-jump. He actually remembered where he was and what the atmosphere was supposed to be like. _Damn, right... That's a birthday party in Hues' house. No need to ruin Elicia's birthday. Or mine..._ he struggled hard to calm down inwardly and pulled a phony smile on face, his eyebrow itching all along.

"Everything is fine, don't bother!" Ed replied in an optimistic tone, drilling the freak with a deathly look, hoping he would just dissipate in the air. Surely, the guy had not. Sokol turned his head to see Alphonse entering the view, comprehension drowning on him like a lazy tide. The younger Elric, in his turn, took into surroundings; two small dots instead of bright round lights stared confusingly at the two.

"I see... It is clear now." the man whispered in astonishment... if a slight rise of eyebrows may be called so. "Please, accept my apologies once again, Fullmetal Alchemist."

_The worst... birthday... ever...! _Edward grudged to himself. To take his younger for him was just a perfect excuse he needed to kill the guy. Blinded by a new flash of rage, Ed raised his automail arm, ready to strike the freak for the common mistake everyone made,  
and jumped high to land a heavy blow at the shining head. _Will I ever be recognized?!_

"Why do people never learn that I am the one who's Fu...!" the young alchemist stopped abruptly; his mouth dropped, eyes round. He could hear a gasp escaping Al behind him.

"Is Something wrong?" the freaky man inquired in a friendly tone, looking right at the elder brother. His right hand was still waiting patiently to be shaken. Edward needed several seconds to gather his wits.

"Are... are you talking to me?!" he asked incredulously, finding it hard to believe his eyes and ears.

"Why? You are Edward Elric, aren't you?" the guy bent his head slightly to be on an eye level with the young alchemist. Only then did Ed noticed how overly tall the guy was. Slim and tall, somehow resembling a reed. "Or am I wrong to assume that you are the elder..."

"No-no! I mean, yes! I mean, I am the elder brother!" the young alchemist was quick to assure the man before he took his words back and lost the small amount of respect he managed to gain. "Huh..? Hold on a second! How do you know who's Alphonse and who's me?"

"Urg, it's just people are used to take me for the elder... No offense, Brother!" Al added quickly when Ed shot him a death glare. The freak... what was his name again?... chuckled good-naturedly.

"You see, I have heard a lot of stories about the youngest State Alchemist." he explained, finally shaking Ed's hesitant automail hand and stretching his own towards shocked Alphonse. "Ones tell he is a giant suit of armour, others that he is a funny pipsqueak..." _Be careful there, pal! One wrong word and you are flying outta here! _Edward snapped inwardly; his eyebrow itching. "Well, my years taught me to never believe gossips. I get information solely from trusted sources."

"By that you mean..." the young alchemist never got a chance to ask, as a loud exclamation devoured all noises and voices in the house. Hugh is still arguing with Mustang.

"Well, my friend! If you had a wife, you wouldn't be so lazy..!" _Huh, they had definitely changed the topic_! Edward snickered, gaining a knowing glance from the guest and a worried one from Al.

"I get it that Roy is a bachelor." the man deadpanned, readjusting his headband. "And Maes is still a matchmaker."

"Nah, he is just a crazy, overloving, overcaring, mad, fanatic daddy." Ed corrected, thinking whether he had forgotten to mention something else.

"And a husband!" Alphonse added helpfully.

"Yes, I figured that much from his letter," the guy chuckled, pulling an envelope from his pocket. Through the paper Ed could see at least ten pictures of Hughes' family. He could only wonder how many paragraphs were dedicated to Elicia and Gracia.

"Then you must be a mysterious guest Lt. Colonel Hughes was talking about!" Al gasped, turning to the brother and suddenly becoming beet red. Ed took a moment to realize what the cause of embarrassment was, and it suddenly hit him. Right... They had been making their guesses just the day before. _Urg, he is definitely not a "pretty lady" Alphonse has been mocking about._ The case was, that Hughes had had a very, suspiciously even, smart face while speaking about his secret guest... _"What all the crap about that guest is, anyway?" Ed wondered lazily, not really interested. "I don't know... But, maybe, it is going to be a lovely girl?" his younger brother suggested, making Edward stare at him with disbelief. "What?" "Whoa, Al! Where would this come from?" "Well, the Lt. Colonel did have this strange smile..." "Hmm... Now that I think of this... It may very well be some pretty face to annoy Mustang..."_ It was clear that the brothers had got it wrong.

"Sokol Jerris, young Alric." the man introduced himself again; good thing, because Ed had been too irritated the last time to pay attention to the guy telling the name."Not really mysterious as you can see." the guest shook his head as if laughing at the word, gingerly stepping over the threshold. _You may think he has glass instead of legs there_. Edward puffed, examining the newcomer more closely. Taking apart his freaky calm ash eyes, small and benevolent smile, thin brows and polished bald head, there was nothing abnormal about the face of his. Judging by the behaviour and a few wrinkles, Sokol was about forty; albeit, Ed had to admit, the man looked pretty well for his age.

"Just a second, please!" came Gracia's exhausted voice. She evidently hadn't reached much success in making a special hairstyle. "I will come in a second!"

"I beg you, no need to hurry, Gracia dear," the guest answered loud enough for others to hear, shrugging a damp coat off and folding it neatly. Suddenly something seemed to be wrong. Edward didn't recognize immediately the source of his uneasiness, but there was something heavy and suffocating in the air.

And then it struck him... The whole house was submerged into tense silence.

Tick-tock... Rain drops were flippantly dancing on the roof, watching curiously through the cold window the quite house. Edward exchanged confused glances with Alphonse.

"Have... have I just heard..." Gracia's whisper put a start to a burst of commotion in the living room where all the guests were. The young alchemist couldn't see the chaos from his place in the hall, although he didn't have to; clang of glasses and cups, shouts and excited remarks gave him a clear idea of what's happening there beyond the wall. A heavy tramp of tens of feet informed the three about the crowd coming... or, more specifically... running up their way.

"It's him!" Hughes singsonged happily and instantly appeared in the doors; his eyes shut joyfully. Ed raised a brow, shifting a dubious glance at the newcomer who was still keeping his cool. That moment he appeared to be almost shy and lost. Almost. The young alchemist easily saw through that bashful expression. Too calm, a little bit tired eyes gave up his confidence. If Ed could tell anything about the man according to the first impression, he was anything but shy or hesitant. Others began to flow in the hall, staring at the newcomer with big round eyes. Somewhere behind the mob Edward noticed pathetic motions; the Colonel struggled to make his way through everyone, but his indignant orders died in the storming sea of murmurs. At least, that scene put Ed's spirits up, and he smirked secretly. "So many years later we can all finally meet him again!" Maes took on dramatic notes. "The great comrade of me and the Colonel, ex-Captain Sokol Je..."

"Huh? That's him? Never thought him to be bald." Havoc deadpanned out of the blue. The silence followed.

Mustang managed at last to get at the front. His face was priceless, Ed wished he had a camera. Actually, he didn't understand very well what the hell was going on, but it was obvious that almost everyone there, at least Roy's team and Gracia, had known the ex-Captain.

"Do you think Jerris is a friend of the Colonel?" Alphonse whispered his own musings out loud. "But he seems so shocked!"

"I dunno, Al." he whispered back, studying the Mustang's expression and stifling a snicker. "But I enjoy Hughes' present for me very much. Guess that even our all-knowing Colonel can't avoid surprises!"

The walls literally began to shake. The brothers turned their heads to watch the host falling down and laughing out loud; tears sprinkling from his eyes and arms hugging the stomach. Everyone's mouth dropped, excepting Mustang's, whose lips were sealed tightly and brow furrowed.

"You're... killing... me... Sokol!" Hughes panted through his laugh, trying to catch a breath. "Bald... no kidding!"

"Have I forgotten to mention it, Maes?" the ex-Captain was tapping his low lip with a middle finger while pondering. His pensiveness was soon to be replaced by a mild expression, as a slight smile bloomed. "Oh, I may very well have. My bad."

"Your... bad?" that malicious hissing made Ed flinch and Al terrified. The brothers simultaneously switched glances towards the forgotten figure of the Colonel; dark aura radiating from him, evil shadows stroking his face. _Not good. My present turns out to be too dangerous!_ "Your bad!?" Mustang yelled again; fists shaking. Edward took quick notice that his hands were still bare and sighed with relief. _No gloves, no flames!_ "Is it all you can come up with, Captain?!"

"Naive me thought you had a wife to cool you down," Jerris shook his head sympathetically and casted an apologetic look to Ed; the smile was still hanging there. To think he was Roy's son... Edward shuddered as he imagined what his childhood would had been like. _Lots of fried stuff, that's for sure..._

"Easy now, Roy!" Hughes stood up and brushed off dust from his grey-and-blue holiday attire. The Colonel paid no heed to his old friend's words; his cold onyx eyes were glued to the ash ones. The air was almost cracking with animosity from him. Seeing that no one was interested in him, Edward took his chance and slipped inconspicuously to Gracia, the only person who appeared to be completely aware of the relationship between the three.

"Does Mustang have issues with comrades or something?" he hushed; his brother stood right next to him, eager to hear an explanation as well. The woman, however, did not respond. Fighting confusion, Ed was about to repeat the question again, when she suddenly snapped exasperatedly at the three surrounded friends, glaring daggers at each of them. Fortunately, Gracia had been too mad at her husband and his comrades to hear the Elric's question, so they were lucky to escape her outburst... Unlike Hughes, Mustang and this Jerris.

"Do you mind, sirs, if I interrupt you!?" never before had Gracia's voice sounded so intimidating. The brothers gulped. Even if they weren't the target of woman's ire, it was dreadful enough to imagine themselves in the trio's place. All the things Mustang planned to say fled his mind, guilt was washing his face. The host was chuckling nervously, fidgeting with his glasses, and Sokol preferred to drop his gaze all together. "I thought it was a birthday party for my daughter and Edward here, not a meeting of bickering men!" The three flinched, not daring to look at either little Elicia, who was obliviously chunking on cookies beyond the wall, or Ed, who flushed slightly under glances of others.

Satisfied with quietness, Gracia allowed a small smile to form on her lips. The guests, kind of embarrassed, were eventually returning to the living room, leaving the unhappy trio, the hostess and the Elrics alone. Snickering Havoc was obviously dying to make some smug remark... something Ed could understand very well... but a scrutinizing glance from the First Lieutenant forced him to keep his mouth shut. Two women were in control; the elder one casted a grateful look at the blond, unofficially entrusting her with the guests. Hawkeye replied with an understanding smile; slight amusement was glittering in her eyes. She pushed the crowd out the hall without a word and closed the doors, providing them privacy.

The tension in the room could be easily cut with a knife. Poor Alphonse tried to find a suitable spot to rest his gaze at, however, no matter where he looked, the younger Elric still felt awkward and wished to be anywhere but there. Edward completely shared his uneasiness. It was one thing to laugh at a family's argument from the side, and another to participate in it. And frankly, neither brother had any experience in that aspect of life. Squabbles with Winry and Pinako didn't count.

Five or ten minutes had passed in a deafening silence. They were ones of the most awkward in the Elrics' life ever. No words were spilt. The annoying rain made all the blabbering. Ed would remember his seventeenth birthday as the day he started to dislike downpours even more. Finally, Gracia inhaled deeply and closed her eyes, everyone tensing immediately and watching her cautiously.

"It is good to see you again, Sokol." she smiled kindly at the ex-Captain, her tired gaze warming up."Though, it would have been nice if Maes had let us know beforehand about your visit." Gracia scolded her husband, who just smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of his head.

"What kind of surprise would it be then?" he laughed nervously, causing Mustang to snort in disbelief. The hostess ignored his excuse and turned to the guest.

"Glad we are to meet you again..." the Colonel huffed again at the words, though was smart enough to keep his opinion on the matter to himself. "... But we still wonder what has made you to pay us a visit?"

"Fifteen years later, damn you!" that time Mustang couldn't restrain himself from adding; even Gracia allowed him to express his obvious anger. _Uh-huh, to disappear for so many years without a single word is a serious business_... Ed remarked bitterly to himself, exchanging glances with Alphonse; thoughts about the father invading their minds. "And you, not telling me about him!" the Colonel shifted a flaming gaze at Hughes, betrayal evident behind the boiling wrath no matter how hard he tried to conceal it. "How long have you been in touch with him?"

"Easy-easy!" his friend raised both hands in surrender. "It is been only a year since I heard from him!"

"One year?" Mustang repeated slowly, his brow itching and a suspiciously calm tone promising nothing good. "Why the difference then? Why not two more years without showing me yourself?"

"We have been keeping in touch exclusively through letters." It was the first thing the ex-Captain had said since the beginning of the interrogation; his voice perfectly composed as if the Colonel's yelling had no impact on him. "It was a whim of destiny I even heard a passer-by talking about Maes Hughes fourteen years ago; a whim I took for a sign to turn for advice to him."

The last statement made Mustang run cold, his pupils narrowed in some inexplicable terror and teeth clenched. A nasty feeling settled deep within Edward. All in all, there wasn't news that could take the Colonel by surprise. If it could, news was definitely worth heeding.

"Tell me, have you achieved success in your... research?" the young alchemist could say with hundred percent certainty that Roy dreaded the answer. Hughes and Jerris glanced at each other. Before either could give a decent reply, the doors opened slightly and a little head with a messy hairstyle popped in. Elysia was standing there, braids and locks were sticking up as if her hair hadn't been brushed for weeks. The girl stared curiously at the ex-Captain and then cried joyfully.

"Daddy, is it a new guest?!" she was clapping her hands and jumping happily around the grown-ups... and the Elric brothers. "You promised he will have a big present!"

"So, you are the lovely young lady who happens to have a birthday today?" Sokol bent and kissed Elysia's hand, making the girl squeal in delight. "I assure you, my lady, that presents are on their way." He raised his head again and casted a slight smile at the young alchemist. "As is your's, Edward Elric."

"Yeah... Thanks..?" he replied awkwardly, not really anticipating that coming.

"Mummy, someone has eaten an apple pie! We need a new one!" the girl exclaimed suddenly, saving Ed from another uncomfortable moment... just to push him into the shameful one.

The elder Elric refused to look at Alphonse, who, no doubt, was giving him a I've-warned-you look and inwardly laughing at him. _Well, it's not my fault I skipped my dinner yesterday trying to buy a gift for Elysia! _The brothers had returned late at night and had no desire to take a risk and wake the Hughes' family up. The repercussions of troubling Maes' daughter's or wife's beauty sleep were always severe; a lecture on their rude behavior guaranteed, including a lyrical digression to Elysia's cuteness. So, Ed had decided to snick into the kitchen and grab something edible... It just had happened to be an apple pie.

"Don't worry, my dear!" oblivious to the Elric's shame, the hostess reassured the girl and claimed pointedly. "I am sure your father will go to the market to purchase more apples so I can bake the biggest apple pie ever for you and Edward!"

"But..." Hughes tried to come up with a coherent excuse, however Gracia's adamant stare didn't leave much to discuss. Seizing his chance, Ed was quick to interrupt.

"Actually, mem, I and Alphonse were just thinking about going for a walk! We can buy apples by the way!" it was the very least he could do to redeem himself. Moreover, neither Ed nor Al wanted to take part in all that old-friend-meeting event any longer. The same thought had visited the brothers at the same moment: "It's better we wait until they let some steam out." _Who knows what crazy ideas and orders may pop into the Colonel's head when he's absolutely pissed off?_

"Nonsense!" the hostess cut short, still unaware of the brothers' itching to leave the scene as soon as possible. "In my house the boy whose birthday it is will not go out while it is pouring cats and dogs just to purchase.."

"No, no! That's fine with us!" Edward shook his head frantically, trying to convince her otherwise, but no ideas came to his mind. He glanced desperately at Al and began to improvise, hoping against hope that he was speaking quite persuasively. "I mean... em... Rain water! Yes, Al needs some rain water to... mm... To wash his brains! Right, Al?!" he nudged him urgently, chuckling nervously.

"Um... Yes!" the younger brother blabbered quickly, waving his large hands perplexedly. "It is very... Cramped here! I should bath my head under the rain once in a while!"

"Well, if you are sure, boys..." Gracia watched disapprovingly as her husband happily hugged the Elric brothers, squeezing Edward between him and Al's metal chest. The young alchemist's groans were completely ignored. Hughes was yelling his gratitudes, glad he could spend an hour before the actual celebration began in the company of his friends. Some guests were to arrive yet, Winry included, so there was some spare time left.

Two minutes later the brothers were walking down the street towards the city's outskirts where a big fair was. Rain seemed to become exhausted and was lazily licking cobbled roads; grey streams were merrily running under the feet. It was far from Edward's favourite kind of weather, however he found himself quite at peace. An unknown feeling returned. No matter how frustrating the day had promised to be, he met the midday with a content smile. He stopped abruptly right in the middle of the street, raised his head and looked at the silver sky. A few drops kissed his cheeks teasingly. Alphonse noticed that his brother wasn't following him; he came up to Ed and watched heavy clouds as well. They refused to give them a glimpse of sunshine, but did it really matter? Seventeen years. It wasn't sun that helped him and his brother. It hadn't made their life any easier, it only fed people with false hopes as any trite metaphor did.

Spending a moment motionless under the rain's care, the brothers continued their way to the fair; their minds at rest and full of cheerful thoughts.

...

"You sure you haven't seen it?!" Winry tried one more time to look absolutely adorable by making eyes big, round and teary. She had already attempted to play a scandalous and capricious lady... that tactics made her no good. Later the girl turned into a shy, blushing blonde... it made no difference. Finally, Winry became a damsel in distress. If a deep frown on an inspector's face could be any index, then that role wasn't successful as well. "Urg! I guess it's high time to reveal my true essence of a demoness!" With that said, the girl pulled out her instruments. At first the naive stout man didn't get the point... He started to grasp the idea when something cold and solid made a contact with a plump cheek of his. Abashed, the inspector rubbed his face and moaned in pain as a huge purple bruise was forming there.

"What the hell, you little wench!" the fat man hissed angrily, getting another smack that coloured his second cheek the same violet hue. Suddenly entrance doors slammed ominously behind him. He stared in awe at the girl; one hand holding the door's knob, another in possession of some frightful instrument. Strait sunny locks concealed her eyes, but he dreaded to look in them anyway. The dark aura around the blonde threatened to consume him, making him tremble with fear. "I-I dunno where your bag is, miss!" the instructor pleaded miserably, falling to his knees. Winry made an intimidating step towards him. "Please! I haven't seen! All I know is that lost things are brought to the office at the next station! Please, have mercy!" he was blabbering and panting, but the girl had lost interest in him the second she had heard about her precious luggage.

"Next station?" the blonde groaned, hating that she had to lose more time. _Well, I am already late and Ed will be pissed off anyway, so another hour won't make it much worse_. Winry concluded wisely, turned to the frightened instructor and flashed him a lovely smile. "Thanks a lot!" leaving the speechless man to sit in the corner, she made her way out the inspector's booth and rushed back to the station to catch the train.

Once inside the coach, the girl flopped into a seat, closing her eyes and sighing tiredly. _That is a loooong day_! She had spent the whole night traveling from Resembool, hence her absent-mindedness because of which she had forgotten her bag with Ed's present in the previous train. _Oh, my poor gift! It is somewhere there, all alone in this cruel world_... Winry shook her head immediately, driving away pessimistic thoughts and hoping that her new automail for Edward would be safe and sound. _Boy, I spent several weeks constructing this new model! How could I just forget it?! And in the coach of all the places!_ _My fate is playing silly games with me_! She thought dimly, puffing and shifting a sad look to the sceneries behind the window. Somebody sat next to her, but Winry was too engrossed into the inner world to pay attention. Green hills and crawling rain drops calmed her down and soon she found herself nodding. Before the girl drifted to slumber, she had made out a few snatches of neighbors' conversation, not really intrigued or interested.

"... and we can also purchase some lovely dress! Or a big candy. Or both. Right! We need all these things. Make a list, will you? ... Don't forget flowers!"

"Sure."

"Splendid! Something else... Well, your suggestions?"

"What about the second one?"

"Thank you for answering my question, because I am trying to compute the total price for everything. By the way, how much money do we have?"

"We have none."

"Excuse me?"

"It appears that sir has forgotten to give us a purse."

"Of course, you recall this fact only now. I am not planning on returning. Great! Now each of us has a specific and individual task. My is to think of something else to buy; your's is to think out a way to get money!"

... "I know."

**My first and last long author note:**

_So, I really hate long and tedious ANs, hence I promise you this is the only one. The following notes will be pretty short =)  
Three reasons I write this FMA story:  
this serial inspirited me and made me want to try and create an OCC, who is NOT Mary Sue.  
I promised myself that if I enter the University this year I am writing a fic no matter what. Well, I did enter)) So, here my promise comes)  
My faculty isn't connected to English, so I need to practice it a lot as I don't want to forget this language._

_As you see, English isn't my native language and I don't have a beta (my numerous grammar mistakes should be a serious give up)). Sorry in advance for all the mistakes)_

_This is actually an AU story and bases on some events from the original serial. Everyone is a year older, though. Just to make it clear: characters don't know about our world and there will be no connection to it; no Dante; characters know pretty much about Homonculies. Oh, and Hughes is alive =D ... At least, for a time being..._

_Well, that's all for now) I know, that's a futile thing to ask, but, please, review! Constructive criticism is welcome and appreciated._


	2. Chapter 2: Of Inks and Paper

**The Carnival of Dolls**

_by SparklyLarry_

_Disclaimer__: I don't own FMA... Though, perhaps I do... No, just my imagination)_

Chapter two

**Of Inks and Paper**

_They only seem to be fragile and short-lived. In fact, they are the ones that can cut and contrive._

Crowds of light-hearted people were loitering around the fair, looking for something particular, gambling, haggling about some trifle or mulling over a purchase. The market was opened only two days a week; no wonder there were so many buyers. Unlike most stores in the city, prices there were considerably lower and a variety of goods much wider. No doubt, everyone liked the fair. Edward couldn't say it about himself. The first moment the brothers entered the market, Alphonse slipped away, attracted by dolorous whines. Some old hag was sitting on a faded rug with a big box in front of her. Three pairs of pitiful eyes bored a touched figure of the younger sibling and an inpatient one of the elder.

"Come on, Al! Stop gawking already!" he tried to move the giant suit of armour, but Alphonse wouldn't budge. The younger brother seemed to be deaf to Ed's grudges as he was stroking the fluffy balls of fur, murmuring stupid sweetnesses.

"Your friend here has a kind heart. Unlike you, young man." the old woman cracked, frowning so much that she resembled a crumpled piece of paper. Edward bit a lower lip to suppress a growl. There was no time to argue with preaching hags.

"Yeah-yeah..." he attempted again to push his brother, however Al was literally glued to the place. A malicious smirk formed on Ed's face as he made a few steps away to have a running start. One... Two... Three! The following instant the young alchemist was lying facedown in a muddy puddle only to receive a distracted 'huh?' from Alphonse, whose huge arms were occupied by rumbling cubs. _Urg! These tiny, shaggy monsters!_

The hag made a caustic remark about Edward's dirty clothes and face; it cost him a lot of patience to block her words out. His mood was changing really fast that day. The peaceful and amiable atmosphere was long forgotten. The elder brother had no wish to stay under the rain any more. Adjusting the gloves, Edward sneaked up to Alphonse and yelled right into the armour.

"Time to go!" so loud the cry was that Al leapt up in surprise; Ed's shout was still echoing in the metal body.

"Brother!" the younger sibling complained, trying to stop his armour from shaking. "You are so mean!"

"That's me!" he grinned and pulled reluctant Alphonse towards other stores. "Come on! I'm covered with mud due to these fluffy brats of yours! Let's buy a coat or something..."

"Well, if you were more affectionate...!" Al started to reprimand his elder sibling when something... or rather someone... small smashed full run into the metal chest, causing him to fall with a squeak. Edward, who was walking just behind Alphonse, failed to see it coming, so, before he realized what had happened, he had been plastered on the ground under his little brother... who happened to be a heavy suit of armour. _Oh, right! Just bury me in dirt, I am muddy anyway!_

"Oh, hello there, little one!" Al's cheerful voice reached his ears. "Are you lost?"

"Wi... will ya move, please, so I can strangle this 'little one'?" Edward panted from his place beneath the armour, fighting for air.

"Don't worry! Brother won't hurt you! He is just very frustrated!" Alphonse definitely had no idea of how weighty he was. _Nah, Al! I'm not frustrated, only squashed under tons of metal!_

"Move already! I can't breathe!" the young alchemist growled, at last getting the right reaction from Al, who instantly jumped up in fright and bent over a crumpled figure of Edward. A black muzzle darted out next to his sibling's head, drools slowly dropping down.

"Take this nasty thing away!" terrified, the elder Elric pressed himself further into the ground, watching slobber flowing down. "Al!" Edward began to panic when his brother did nothing. "Do something, damn it!"

"I can't!" Alphonse cried desperately, spinning helplessly round the black creature like a bee.

"Why the hell not?!" Ed was hysterical. Drools had almost reached his skin.

"Don't breathe!" his brother commanded out of the blue, and the young alchemist held his breath as told. "If I do as much as touch it, saliva will be all over your face!" he explained urgently. "I will try to distract it!"

Despite Al's efforts to call the small demon, frighten it off and even plead with it to leave poor Ed alone, the creature wouldn't move. Its curious button-eyes nonchalantly peered at the young alchemist's awed face that was gradually turning purple due to the lack of oxygen. Edward had a nasty feeling that the monster was toying with him and enjoyed its cruel game very much. _Yeah, what can be nicer than torment the lying me with your drools, bastard_! Fake innocence was evident. A scoffing glint was dancing madly within the depths of dark eyes. Weird musings visited his mind while he was lying nailed to the ground by the hound, immobilized and disarmed, like what would be less disgusting; to die because of anoxemia or let be smeared with saliva.

"Where is the damn dog?!" Somebody hissed, and relief took over Edward as the black monster all of a sudden pressed its sharp ears back and disappeared from his view, whining quietly. "Here it's, this brat! Sorry, pal! But it ran away before I had even noticed!"

As the attacked Elric stood up, grumbling at the stupid creature, his gaze fell at a plump tradesman holding a leash, a whining demon sitting next to him. Edward flickered a murderous glare at the animal, mulling about using his alchemy to instantly bury it on the spot.

"He will do." another voice joined the conversation, drawing Ed's attention to the third person - a young woman with unbiased but shrewd look. Her mouth was set in a straight line, however there was something in her eyes that told the elder Elric she was gabbing at him. He just sent the same deathly glare at her he did at the black creature. Something that she didn't deem important enough to heed. Annoyance started to pock Ed again, gnawing at his nerves like a hungry rabbit at a carrot. "I take the dog."

"You've no idea of how happy I am to get rid of the brat, but really, miss, I should kind of warn you that it is one hell of a hound!" the tradesman pulled the leash, making the creature whim again. "Arr, just drop the tirade already!" the man shouted angrily, the following swear-words caused Alphonse to sympathize with the beast and he wanted to interfere, but Ed stopped him with his metal hand.

"Come on, you buy this I-am-a-harmless-little-puppy-please-don't-hurt-me thing?!" the young alchemist grinned, gloating over the dog that was really resembling a cute angel with black wings at the moment. Though, Edward knew better and shared the trader's opinion on the matter. "Ha, obviously the monster is acting a pretty-face now! Where have you been looking minutes ago?! It has almost strangled and humiliated me!"

"I would hate to burden a sweet lady like yourself with such a demon!" the fat man gave the girl a crooked smile, his rotten teeth were a sight that made the brothers want to gag. The young lady was left unimpressed, she didn't as much as blinked to his rant. "Frankly, it's not a dog. It's a sack of troubles that forces its masters to moan and groan."

"I know." For whatever crazy reasons the wench wanted the hound, she was determined to get it. _Girls are insane_. Ed concluded, turning on the heels and walking away towards stores with clothes. _Elysia must be the only normal girl here. I mean, shouldn't they like teddy bears and pink flowers and other pretty stuff? Phh, Winry is hooked on automails! To an extent that she worries about my precious arm more than she does about me! Lieutenant will shoot my head off before I say "pink". And now this stranger with a thing for monsters! The world is turning crazy._

At last, the siblings made their way to a small clothing store, stuffed with various sweaters, scarfs and coats. A merchant was engrossed with a book on his knees; he spared them a one-second glance and dived back into pages, drawling in an irritated tone. "No small sizes. Children clothes is a next store."

"Whom do you call short?!" Ready to bury another thing, Edward got ready to transmute the damn store, only to be grabbed from behind by two big metal arms. "Lemme go, Al! I'll kick the brat's-".

"Time to go, brother!" Alphonse chuckled nervously, holding the struggling Ed, who was vigorously swearing and yelling. "Excuse him, please! He had a rough morning." he apologized timidly, gaining a disinterested look from the tradesman.

"You better have a close eye on the little brother of yours." Were his departing words, which produced a bomb-effect on Edward; his hysteria intensified. Al, though, refused to relent and dragged his sibling away, closing a big swearing mouth with his hand.

When they reached another store, the Fullmetal Alchemist finally received his freedom from a firm clutch of Alphonse. Straightening indignantly and showing his offense by every frown on the face, Edward addressed a trader, that time a young guy, probably as old as him and definitely much taller than him.

"Hey, need something to wear." the elder Elric pulled on a confident smirk and spoke in a business-like manner as if there was nothing odd about a seventeen-year-old purchasing clothes at that particular store for children. "Nothing gay-colored, nothing official. Find me a golden mean, will ya?"

What a terrible misstep in his cool and assured demeanor he had committed, Ed couldn't see. For him everything was brilliant and played very well. _Coolness - check. Nonchalance - check. Friendliness - check._ Whatever the lacking element was, the tall tradesman with freckles on the nose was laughing his butt off, buying Edward's facade not for a second. The young alchemist's fists clenched and teeth's clenched. _Someone's blood is soon to be spilled, pal!_

"S-sorry, pal!" the trader managed to pronounce through his repulsive laughter. "Will... will you, please, repeat it again?" Edward's face was turning red with fury, not embarrassment, although the guy at the counter obviously got the wrong idea; his neighing laugh only intensified. Inhaling deeply, the young alchemist did his best to calm down and not kick the hell out of the trader. He found himself merciful enough to give the damn peer one more chance.

"I said, I need something not too fancy to wear!" he hissed through clenched teeth, perfectly self-composed outwardly, his imagination tearing the guy to pieces inwardly. Ed's eye developed a twitch, as the tradesman choked with new fits of laugh.

"Ah, that's priceless!" Someone's blood is soon to be spilled! "You, look over there!" pointing towards some pegs, the guy buried his head in hands on the counter, his body still shaking from laugh. Now Edward was seriously thinking about transmuting something. The trader's finger was pointing at children's pink tie, orange braces, small-size boxers with funny muzzles of kittens on them, red mittens and so on and so on. Alphonse's stifled giggles behind him broke the last dam of his self-composure, letting a sea of irritation, wrath and anger rage through his core and stream out.

Calling the pimply brat several unflattering names, the Fullmetal Alchemist clapped his hands and put them on the counter, transmuting a wooden surface and wrapping it around a trader's thick head. Confused, the guy raised his now heavy head and stared dumbly at the mirror on the opposite wall. The silence followed as the tradesman's gears were slow to start working.

"Ha! See the power of the all-mighty alchemist!" Edward cried triumphantly, admiring his work greatly. Wood on the brat's head was given a form of pig's snout; the helmet suited him perfectly as if it was his real head and not a fake one. The guy blinked once, blinked twice. And fell down... laughing. The elder Elric watched him agape while the younger one stopped futile attempts to stifle his chuckle.

"Pal, you-you're such a f-fun!" Impotent anger was throbbing through Ed's veins like molten iron as he could do nothing to shut the brat up. "A-a pig's head! Bo-o-oy, is it fun! A-a mighty alchemist! That's a good one!"

"Gimme some normal clothes already, dammit!" Edward shouted furiously, though he sounded pathetic even to his own ears. _Traitor_! the young alchemist accused bitterly, glaring at his giggling brother.

It was pouring even heavier now; Ed's dirty coat clang to his body, certainly making him look even smaller... Shorter. Irritating laugh united with mocking drops against the Fullmetal Alchemist, ringing full force in his head. Frustrated to no end, humiliated and miserable to an extent he was ready to pity himself, Edward was about to officially call it the worst birthday ever...

"Excuse me..?" a timid whisper compelled silence, even the rain appeared to be ashamed of its shameless teasing.

Three pairs of eyes flung to the owner of a quite and sweet voice. A little girl, her chin just reaching the counter, was standing there, staring back at them with her clear and almost translucent silver eyes. Ed actually believed she was blind, but the stranger's light and at the same time acute gaze was floating over every one of the trio, leaving no doubts about her being a sighted person. Something about the girl was off; icy tendrils of an unrecognized feeling were creeping in his stomach. It wasn't fear. It wasn't safety. If anything, it resembled... void and emptiness, as though her look had opened a wide hole in him. A hole that couldn't be described as bad or good. Just a hole the young alchemist wasn't accustomed to. Grey curls were brushed to the left part of her little head and clipped high up; they twirled down like millions of typhoons and rested on her tiny left shoulder. Ed would have thought that she was an old hag with hair so dingy if not for her face, that was of an eight or ten-year-old.

"How... How dare you?" she murmured, such an accusing, mournful, melancholic note was tinging her voice, that the Elric's heart ached. Judging by the shameful look, that sank down the moment the girl started to speak, the guy at the counter felt pretty awkward. Fortunately for the brother, the strange child seemed to be addressing not them but the trader, so it was his place to feel remorseful. Why any of them had to feel that way in the first place Ed couldn't say and he doubted that either the guy or his brother could. Whatever the reason was, the girl's doleful voice filled their souls with unexplainable repentance and conviction of their own guilt. "Do you... can you even start to comprehend all the hardships fate has thrown to our faces?"

"Please, girl, don't cry!" the guy begged, however he was too late, as two crystal tears rolled down her pale and thin cheeks.

"Can you start to comprehend what my brother had to go through to earn a coin?" the girl continued, a sad gaze was looking right through the tradesman, making him squirm and fidget with his fingers. Ed was starting to sympathize with the guy. No one deserved to be tortured by a teary, reproachful look of a despondent child. Memories from the childhood revived in his mind; an image of sobbing Winry, her red and swollen face was flickering before his eyes. "My brother had to work hard day and night for the Military to get a crust of bread. We could hardly get by. Everything my brother got he selflessly gave to me so that I could live and grow. He ate twice... once a week. And now the world turns its cold shoulder on him again. His shortness is the evidence of his devotion and caring. If you want to mock someone, than look at me. You are free to jeer at me as long as you wish, but do not you dare to taunt this selfless person."

Alphonse sweatdropped behind Ed, confusion radiating from him. The elder Elric had no clue what nonsense the girl was talking about or what was going on in the little head of her, but her words had an incredible effect on the trader. The wooden pig snout looked at the young alchemist again, and Edward was shocked to distinguish some kind of respect in the glance. _Was the whole maudlin story about me?!_

"I-I had no idea, girl!" the guy tried to justify his actions, suppressing a sob. "I am so sorry! Please, excuse my heartless behaviour! Of course, I have all kinds of clothing you may be interested in! Here you go!" with that said the trader drove under the counter and pulled out a huge pile of different clothes. A confused but smug smile was forming on Ed's lips. There was everything he was searching for: from boots and socks to coats. But even more important was the fact that no garment was too fancy of made for children. That was exactly what Edward wanted to get. "Hold on a sec, dude! I think I had something else... Ah, well, just take your time and choose! I'll bring more from my wagon. Wait for a bit!" the guy departed, not at all minding his wooden helmet. Or, perhaps, the fact that his head was concealed under an artificial head of a pig had evaded his mind. Either way he left the Elric brothers alone... with a heap of new clothes.

"At last, something decent!" the young alchemist exclaimed joyfully and literary drove into the pile, pieces of clothes flying away as he set for a search. Through out his "swimming" Edward heard his little sibling clear his throat and start a conversation... an awkward one as Al's voice was neither determined nor certain. He appeared to dread talking to the child.

"Thank you... A lot! That was genius!" Alphonse's hesitation in speaking couldn't deprive the joy and admiration, that sounded clearly in his words. Ed stopped his searches for a moment to spare a glance at his little brother. Just as he had assumed - the suit of armour was standing with its arms pressed to chest, eyes big, round and fascinated. The elder Elric could hardly suppress a snicker. His sibling fell so easy for everything small and cute, weather it was a girl or a kitten.

"It is nothing, really." The child replied with a sweet smile. Her voice remained low and soft, but lost its tragic notes and sounded more lively. Still, Edward couldn't shrug off the heaviness of melancholy that was circling around the girl like a stream of smoke. "I saw two gentlemen in trouble and decided to give them a hand of help."

"Well, thanks. For this play with a selfless brother and all." Edward expressed his gratitude matter-of-factly, not paying much attention to her as he was busy choosing between a dark blue and a light grey cloaks. "Hey, Al, what do you think?" he raised both pieces asking for his piece of mind.

"Hm... Maybe..." Al appeared to run into the same dilemma as he was pointing at one cloak but then suddenly pointed to another. "I...- er... think this is... Though, no..."

"Why don't you take both?" the girl suggested out of the blue, adjusting a fluffy mane of dingy curls on her skinny left shoulder. Ed blinked, his puzzled look at first fixing at her, then at the cloaks.

"Indeed... Why the hell not?" the elder Elric grinned, flapping his forehand. "You know, Al, we should occasionally waste our money here and there. By the way, you want something?"

"Urg... I guess not..." Alphonse rubbed his metal head uncomfortably, as if trying to come up with a good excuse. Ed wasn't satisfied with his brother's unsure answer, so he was about to look around for something unique and useful for the suit of armor, when Al suddenly exclaimed. "Elysia! We must buy a present for her!"

"Dammit, I've almost forgotten!" Ed once again flapped his forehead, that time with his right palm... Right, metal palm. The contact wasn't pleasant. The young alchemist cursed, rubbing the sore place furiously, but then stopped short, a brilliant idea dawning upon him. "Hey!" he addressed the child excitedly, who hadn't gone anywhere but had been curiously watching two siblings for the whole time. "You're the girl, right? You know what a girl of your age would like to get, don't you? Elysia is a little bit shorter, though, and a year or two younger - she's five now."

In the teeth of his expectations the child began to chuckle softly, molten silver of the round eyes reflecting her amusement; one could believe Ed had told some popular joke. _What's so funny_? He frowned slightly, exchanging a perplexed glance with Alphonse and waiting for an explanation. The girl, however, refrained from commenting and responded in a voice saturated with humor: "Sure thing! I'll be glad to help! Let's see... A dress! A nice, velvet dress! And a big candy! That will do it! Ah, the present will be splendid!" the child shifter her gaze at pegs with gowns, humming thoughtfully. "Over there!"

"Damn, we don't know the right size!" Edward groaned, cursing his luck. He liked the idea, but he would rather die listening to Maes' lectures about not having a gift for his cute daughter on her birthday than flush under glares of guests when it would become clear that the dress didn't suit Elysia.

"I can try some dresses." the girl suggested immediately, not for an instant discouraged by the siblings' pessimism. "You said yourself that we are pretty much the same regarding the height."

"That will be great!" Al's spirits were obviously running up, as he readily grasped a chance to find a suitable gift for Elysia. Edward was another case, though. As much as he wished to get a present for the little miss Hughes, the young alchemist wasn't eager to depend too much on the child. His ego had already suffered a lot that day, no need to harm it even more. Not only the famous Fullmetal alchemist's dressing was secured due to a small girl's wit, but his purchasing a present for Elysia was defined by her resourcefulness as well! _That's a luxury I cannot permit!_

"Don't you think that you spend too much time with strangers?" A smug smirk stretched his lips, as he inquired with a fake concern tinging his voice. Alphonse glanced at him reproachfully, but Edward simply ignored the sibling. "I'm positive that your parents are devilishly worried about you at the moment!"

"No need to fret!" The child brushed his warnings and fears aside, focusing an astute gaze at his bewildered expression. "I am sure, my dad is fine with that. Now, where should I start?" leaving a numb Ed and excited Al to stand at the counter, the girl swiftly jumped over it, grabbed several dresses and with a wink disappeared in the store's debris. The young alchemist glared at the over-happy brother but didn't say anything, only huffed and crisscrossed hands on his chest.

"How do you like it?" the child asked a few minutes later, coming out from the store in a lovely pistachio-colored dress without sleeves and with a long, fluffy skirt, that flied up like a cloud when the girl started to swirl around. "Isn't it the loveliest attire ever?!"

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" Alphonse's appreciation knew no borders and he applauded vigorously when the girl dived into a a graceful curtsey. "Brother, now we have a perfect gift for Elysia! We are saved!"

"Yeah... That's true..." Ed admitted reluctantly, mumbling his thanks to the child and sparing her a slight smirk. "At least, I have no fear of a how-could-you-not-get-a-present-for-my-little-cute -daughter lecture any more! You know pretty much about fashion, huh?" he addressed the grey-haired girl, trying not to stare so openly at her sickly white skin and strange curls. To conceal his involuntary pity, he started to examine two cloaks with a newfound interest.

"Not really." the child shook the head and swirled again, raising small hands up and lowering eyelids. Alphonse was enchanted; Ed couldn't find another word to describe his brother's demeanour. He had the same stupid, tender look and posture he had in a little kitten's presence. The young alchemist actually apprehended that Al would come up to the child, hug her, hid in his armour without Ed's awareness, secretly feed her, and then...

_A month later: "Al! How could you take her without telling me!?" the elder Elric is yelling furiously as he discovered his sibling's little secret. "But Brother! You would have never allowed!" Alphonse tries to speak up for himself. "Of course not! She is worse than a kitten! You have to look after the child 24/7! And feed her every two hours! That's ridiculous! How do you imagine us traveling with her?! What if she is seasick or something?!" Edward enumerates arguments against. "But Brother...!" the younger sibling makes an attempt to plead with him again. "I said no!" the Fullmetal Alchemist cuts short. "Do you mean than that a kitten isn't such a bad idea?" Gleeful fire in Al's eyes foreshadows nothing good. "Well..." Ed is at loss for words. "Yep! Can I have a kitten than?!" Alphonse claps happily. "That's not what I..." the young alchemist is in a desperate need for an adequate refusal. "Yes-yes, Brother, certainly, you are right! The real child is much better than a small, helpless ball of fur..." Al sighs dramatically. "Okay, okay! You may have a kitten!" Edward surrenders._

Edward hasted to wan the scene out of his mind and focused on his surroundings once more. While he was daydreaming, the girl must had retold Al some funny story, because his sibling was laughing hard at that moment. Smile never leaving her round face, the child suddenly suggested: "Now, what about sweets? A small girl would like to have a big and beautiful caramel apple. You are lucky, as I happen to know a store where the best candies can be bought!"

The child waved her hand to the brothers to follow, turned and dissolved in the crowd, her grey curls appearing and disappearing in gaps between scurrying people. Alphonse got ready to run after her, but Ed stopped him with his automail. He was really afraid of getting attached to another little girl... especially to an ailing and fragile child as that one. Months hadn't erased memories of little Nina from his mind. The Fullmetal Alchemist magnetized misfortunes. No need to make the girl's fate any worse. Whoever the child was, Ed had a feeling she didn't lead a carefree life. The younger Elric was about to protest when he caught Edward's bitter look; comprehension downing on him as he too remembered Nina. Seeing his brother's distress, the young alchemist felt a pang of guilt for ruining his mood. Before he could find some right words to cheer Al up, a loud peal torn their ears. The brothers stood in stupor for a moment, puzzled.  
Bam!  
The sound shook them again, literally. Alphonse's armour was trembling, as if something had hit it with a hammer...

"Incredible!" a high-pitched voice cheered from behind Al, attracting the Elrics' attention. "An incredible durability! Not a scratch!"

"I've told you so." the second voice made the siblings leap up into the air and swing around; the following instant their mouths agape and eyes as round as the moon. A fancy dressed old man was devouring Al's suit of armour with his intent gaze, a woman in a fine gown was holding his right hand and staring at Alphonse as well; fascination filling every wrinkle on their faces. But it wasn't a married couple that had dumbfounded the Elric's, but the young lady with a gigantic hammer over her shoulder; the black dog sitting obediently by her side. An almost mocking snarl was addressed specially to the startled Fullmetal alchemist. He gulped.

"This relic must be older than my grand-grandfather!" The old man, who was probably a rich merchant or just a local wealthy enterpriser, heeded neither the awkwardness nor the hostility in the air. His only concern was Al, or more exactly Al's armour, as the old man was drooling over it like Edward over an apple pie.

"Grand-grand-grandfather, actually." The girl corrected nonchalantly, ignoring the brothers as well and drumming her fingers lightly on a wooden shaft.

"Incredible! Just incredible!" the rich man repeated, captivated, and touched perplexed Alphonse. "Just look at this metal! Incredible!" He stroke the surface in awe; one could thought that the man had a real philosopher stone before him. The strange lady with a thing for demonic, stupid dogs shrugged; a neutral expression on her face hadn't changed for once. While the wealthy merchant was twaddling and admiring Al's armour, Ed had finally come back to his wits and stared at the girl with utter enmity. Two or three minutes later, she finally deemed worthy to cast him a lazy glance, in which indifference was amiably co-existing with cold curiosity. Almond eyes didn't repeat the face's expression; her lips were a straight line, but tiny sparks in her gaze spoke otherwise as they were smoldering there with some kind of twisted amusement.

"It will be a great addition to your collection, honey!" the merchant's wife exclaimed and gave her husband a happy embrace. Turning to the silent girl, she said delightfully. "Fate itself smiled on us, sending you here! My dearie was searching for a worthy exhibit for ten years, but our searches were fruitless! Now we have found it! All thanks to you three! But..." The woman seemed to feel uncomfortable about something. "Are you sure about the price?"

"That's fine, madam." the girl replied in a hoarse voice and shrugged slightly. Ed couldn't call her face emotionless. Nope, it was alive all right... Just coated under a thick layer of either skepticism or cynicism or something else Edward couldn't figure out. "This armour was our family heritage; it was bequeathed to our sire by his sire and so on, and so on. That's all we have now. The only reminder of our parents. Before they died, they taught us to do all we can in order to survive. We can't get by any longer. If our survival is at stake, than we won't cling to the past, but move forward. Even if it means to sell the last thing from our previous life."

"What the hell?" The young alchemist had no clue what the whole drama was about. _Wow, the second time today I hear a tragic life-story_... The only question concerning him was what Al's armour had to do with all the crap about that girl's family heritage. _Maybe, their so-called relic resembled this suit of armour or something_. Ed assumed, sharing a confused glance with Alphonse.

"My goodness! No way we will buy the armour for such a low price! It is invaluable!" The merchant's wife gasped and put her hands over the heart, to which the young lady nodded and unexpectedly moved up to the brothers, taking place between them and putting her hands on their shoulders. As the girl stood next to Edward, he noted with displeasure that she was almost a head taller than him. Her touch was such a shock that poor and embarrassed Alphonse could die on the spot, while his elder brother, confused and pissed off for a hundredth time that day, wanted to shrug the hand off. The grip, to his astonishment, was firm, however, so he couldn't make a strange hand disappear from his shoulder without causing a scene. Curses died on Ed's lips as he was struck dumb with the following words.

"That's fine, my brothers and I are fully aware of our actions." _Is she talking about... Us?! Stop! What the hell is going here?!_

"Just look at your brothers' expressions! They must be devastated!" The woman cried in horror, and Ed could understand her. Their faces must had been quite a view: absolute and pure bewilderment. _Bewilderment - 60 percent; stupor - 30 percent; astonishment - 10 percent; sense - zero percent_. Ed enumerated the components of his facial expression, fighting with them fervently.

"He hasn't taken it off since the day they died." She explained patiently, something in her impartial manner of speaking intrigued the couple even more. "Sadness does remain."

"Will anyone just...!" the elder Elric had only one sibling and that was enough! He didn't need neither want more brothers or, in that case, sisters, and it was the second time that day when some stranger tried to become related to him. _Is the world going crazy_? Success wasn't on Edward's side, though, as the wealthy man interrupted him.

"I pay you double!" the man announced resolutely, stroking the Al's armour lovingly, as if it were a little baby. Ed could see that his brother was anything but comfortable and like him Al had made several attempts to put a word, though all of them failed due to the merchant's excitement, his wife's sympathy and the freakish girl's flatness. In short, the couple was deaf to the brothers, and the young lady was making up some crap and wouldn't allow the Elric to ruin her fairy tale. "This perfect relic cannot be so cheap! I come from a noble family, I will never use poorer people to make a profit on their ignorance and naiveness!"

The rich man threw a fat ringing bag. Exasperated that no one heeded his protests and indignation, Edward was going to draw attention to him by getting his automail on money. Then everybody would be forced to reckon with him, and the crazy lady would have some explanations to make! Belatedly, the elder Elric realized that the same idea came to his brother's mind... Two metal hands collided in the midair just under the flying bag with coins... which was neatly caught by the tall girl. Disappointed growls were once again left unnoticed.

"We appreciate it." the young lady nodded and thanked in a dry voice, hiding her treasure under a dark-blue jacket. "I will be going now. My promise to buy boots you were dreaming about stands, Bro." The girl completely shocked Ed when she affectionately tousled his hair and nudged Al in a familiar manner; everything done so naturally and nonchalantly that one could believe she indeed was their baby-sister.

"Hey! Cut the crap already, you..." Edward snapped and shrunk back as his irritation got the best of him. It was time to put the stupid play to an end. The Fullmetal Alchemist was done being a numb marionette in a foreign performance! Unfortunately, the freakish girl had other plans.

"No more words, Bro." A decisive and adamant tone made Al squirm and left Ed to seethe. Once the word had been stolen, he couldn't hope to outspeak her. "I'll do without a dress another year. You are the one who needs boots." The young lady turned on heels. Long, wavy locks, tied in a high and disheveled ponytail, teasingly slapped his face. There were two thin braids, beginning at the left side of her forehead and running back to the core of the ponytail, instead of a bang. They concealed almond eyes as the girl turned away, but the lower part of her face came to life as lips formed a slight, hardly distinguishable smirk. A tall figure with long amber hair had disappeared in the crowd before Ed came out of another stupor.

"Hey! Come back!" He knew that it was futile to cry after her, but he had to express his anger some way, so Edward yelled, and when he received no answer, the young alchemist swore quietly.

"I should say that your sister is the most selfless person I have ever met!" the old woman remarked and sighed dramatically. "Such a pity I do not have a loving sibling." The Elrics were too pissed off to pay attention to the woman's chatter.

"Let's go, Al." At last, Edward got the better of his temper and managed to somewhat calm down. "We still need apples..." He was about to go, when the merchant stood in front of them.

"Wait, boys! I understand that it is hard for you two, and I will gladly give you a minute or two to say goodbye to the family relic, but, all in all, we have a good deal. Call me when you are ready." The wealthy man addressed them good-naturally, a sympathetic smile compelled Ed to frown and Al to stop dead.

"Umm... Ready for what?" the younger brother wondered, what seemed to take the married couple by surprise, as if he had asked about some all-known fact.

"For seeing off your incredible armour to our great collection, of course!" the lady was first to come back to her wits and chuckled light-heartedly. Edward found nothing funny in her ridiculous statement.

"Sorry, but the armour belongs to my brother and nobody can have it but him." the Fullmetal alchemist wasn't in a mood to argue with old men, so he did his best to avoid some kind of scandal and misunderstanding. Whatever the freakish girl had promised them, personally Ed had said nothing about the case, so it wasn't his business.

"So, young man, now you go back on your promise to the parents. Shame on you!" the old lady reprimanded him with an ugly scowl ; all kindness evaporated from her face. "You don't deserve a sister you have, impudent child! She has told us how she is doing all the chores to keep you two alive! And you cannot even give something away to help her! Shameless kids!" The last words were almost spat into Ed's face. His composure gobbled.

"What're you talking about?" The young alchemist tried really hard to preserve his coolness and save a confident face. It was slipping away very fast... "The freak with a ponytail isn't our sister in the first place."

Ed anticipated anything but that. His pretty innocent, and absolutely honest, statement produced a very negative effect on the couple, as the lady clasped hands over her mouth, and the merchant's eyes rounded enormously. "Traitor... Now, you are ready to reject your only sister to leave the stupid armour for yourselves?!" the woman was hysteric. Edward tried to explain and protest, but she would let him produce no sound at all. "How selfish! Nothing can be worse than a double-faced man!"

"I'm not even acquainted with her, dammit!" The young alchemist freaked out, realizing that the old men didn't listen to his excuses anyway. "Do you realize who is standing before you?!" _It's time to use my trump_! Blank glares proved they didn't have the slightest idea. "Look attentively and remember me once and forever! Me..." at the time Edward had drawn attention of quite a lot of people, so he made a dramatic pause. "...the Fullmetal Alchemist, Edward Elric!"

The dead silence met his ears. Doubtful glares were making holes in him. Al gulped and whispered him one word: "The State alchemist's watch!" Smugness returned to his face, his hand dived into the pocket to pull out the symbol of his power... _Huh.._.? The agitated crowd waited impatiently as the elder Elric fumbled about the cloak in search of his watch. "Damn, damn, damn!" He was grumbling quietly, his frustration and fear rapidly growing. _Oh, right! Damn you, Hughes!_ Ed remembered where his precious watch was. It was probably resting in a pile of Elysia's presents. When he had come with no gifts, the young alchemist had been desperate to gladden the little miss somehow, so, she had asked him to show his watch... And Ed had given it to her for a time... _Damn_!

Gradually, an agitated crowd was turning into an angry mob. Unflattering could be heard from here and there. An evil mass of people made a menacing step towards the Elric brothers.

"Brother..." Alphonse called the young alchemist unsurely, cautiously watching the mob, as though surrounded by a pack of starved wolfs. "What do we do now?"

"It's simple, Al." Ed replied in a too quiet voice, glanced around again, chuckled and gave Al a suspiciously calm look, before spinning around, rushing forward and yelling back to the bewildered sibling. "Now we run!"

**A/N:**

_Thanks a lot to those who read and left a review! I really appreciate it!  
This chapter turned out to be pretty long... Well, I've managed to finish it in a week)) I hope that the third chapter won't take longer!  
Please, read and review)_


	3. Chapter 3: Of Rags and Straw

**The Carnival of Dolls**

_by SparklyLarry_

_Disclaimer_:_ I don't own FMA. If I did... Well, it's better I don't. My imagination has no conscience._

Chapter three

**Of Rags and Straw**

_Do not be repulsed by their ugly, malicious looks and they will selflessly, faithfully and daringly defend your sacred garden._

A sweet fragrance of fresh apples was floating in the air as Roy peeled another red fruit and put it into a deep bowl. A few drops of juice splashed from under a knife when the Colonel pierced an innocent apple he imagined to be his friend's head, who was standing next to him and giving a cocky smile to his numerous glares. Maes' job was to cut apples to pieces and Roy wished he could do that activity instead of peeling. In that case, he would at least let some steam out and wouldn't wish to see Hughes' head torn off. But no, Gracia was adamant in her decisions. So, here he was, peeling fruits for pies. Maes, the reason of his mistress, was cutting them, and the last member of the whole drama, Sokol, was sprinkling pieces with lemon juice and covering them with sugar. His face absolutely tranquil, betraying no emotions. Mustang had to grit his teeth to refrain from coming up to the old comrade and hitting him hard again.

As soon as the Elrics had left the house, Mustang was free to boil in his own anger without distractions. Following Gracia's advice, the three inconspicuously went to the kitchen while the woman was making arrangements for the first contest. The silence was thick and tense, the atmosphere around the Colonel was almost sparkling. He hoped some of these sparks would bite the bald and impertinent head of the ex-Captain.

"Fifteen years, huh?" Mustang laughed bitterly, his eyes anything but forgiving. Perhaps, he did miss his old friend. Perhaps, he did worry for his well-being. Hell, he wouldn't even deny hoping to see him alive again. Never had he thought that his reaction would be like that. "How it was, being dead and missing?"

"To be frank, not as bad as many people believe it to be." The nonchalant and slightly amused tone wouldn't be of a big help. The Colonels fists trembled.

"You are out of the tomb making corny jokes here?" A sadistic smile crept on his lips as Mustang could smell baking cookies Gracia had made. "Let me joke as well, Captain."

Snapping his fingers, Mustang fell to the floor as an oven with crispy cookies filled with fire and spitted it out. _Damnit, Hughes may kill me later for it!_ He thought, using his alchemy to set Sokol's coat on fire.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Maes fretted over the exploded oven, in futile to extinguish the fire. Surely, Mustang had everything under his control - he wouldn't allow his friend's house to burn down to a crisp. But at first he would force the truth out of the bastard.

"Tell me the truth, Captain! Quit fooling around with this stupid smile!" Maybe, Roy just did not get something, but he failed to see anything amusing in the situation... Unlike Jerris, who ceased smiling only to begin chuckling lightly.

"You are not the only one, Roy, who seeks the Truth." An ambiguous statement was the last drop the Colonel could tolerate. Forgetting about his surroundings, he grabbed every unlucky item in the kitchen, igniting it and throwing at the ex-Captain. For a forty-four-year-old man he wasn't bad as Sokol managed to dodge most burning stuff, though he did look like hell due to the one-sided fight...

A loud shot made everyone stop on the spot. Dread slipped its icy fingers under Mustang's skin; that gaze he would recognize anywhere even with his eyes closed. He had no need to turn around; Roy was aware of what's waiting for him there - a certain Lieutenant's stern look and a smoking gun, ready to shoot again. The shot was a bad sign - Riza did not approve of the happening and was probably irked by the three's behaviour... Risking to take a glance at her, the Colonel confirmed his worse apprehensions. Hawkeye wasn't just displeased with their demeanour. No, she was particularly furious about Mustang's misdoings. If glares could kill, Roy would have been a breathless corpse long ago.

"It's so nice of the Major to bring us apples!" Gracia's voice could be heard now, and judging by it she was closing in. Maes' turn to grow pale came. "Oh, here you are, Lieutenant Hawkeye. I was just looking for you to..." The hostess abruptly lapsed into silence, taking into her surroundings; an exploded oven, burnt baskets, broken plates, molten forks and etc... Astonishing it was, but Gracia didn't start to yell or something of the kind. Instead, she smiled sweetly and addressed the three. "I hope your reunion is going on well enough to entrust you with an apple pie cooking then."

That was a delicate move; Mustang was impressed. And an efficient one. All three of them unconditionally set a temporary truce, because baking an apple pie was... Well, it was baking an apple pie - an activity they had been always forced to do in the youth whenever they had been distressed and dispirited or fighting. Work was anything but enjoyable, humiliating even... Though, no one just could bring it up in themselves to refuse to do it. _May it be the only symbol of our strained friendship. _Mustang relented, but not much... His real anger was only beginning to boil inside, like a volcano's power before the eruption. The storm had not even start yet.

"I have no intention of continuing this silent fight!" The pot of Roy's patience cracked, so he decisively put the knife away, moved the bowl aside and, ignoring Maes' protests, pushed him away from the table. Now there was no live wall between the Colonel and the ex-captain. Mustang could finally confront his old comrade. Fifteen years, dammit... Was he furious? Oh, yes, he was. And Roy had decent reasons to be.

_Fifteen years ago:_

_He was sitting in a dark corner of a small barn; a sour smell of dump hay was sticking to the clothes, mixing with another smell... the one he hadn't been able to wash away since the latest battle... the sweet fragrance of blood. Scarlet blots bloomed on his uniform like poppies; they were dry and old on the material, but fresh and hot in his mind. There was one more odour in the air that made him cringe and shudder in terror and disgust. Ashes. That symphony of smells was loathsome, a bitter reminder of his crimes. Though, surprisingly, Roy had no wish to free himself from it. He needed a constant scourge to set him in motion, to force him forward. The odour of death was his way to fight the ghosts of war._

_The three of them had come there to find a sanctuary from injustice and cruelty of real world, to share their fears and suggest a supportive shoulder. The barn wasn't an embodiment of peace, but it was far better than burnt cities, mounts of bodies, faces in tears. Another corner was occupied by Maes, a basket with an apple pie they had cooked together with his girlfriend in front of him. Gracia knew how to distract them from gloomy thoughts, at least for a time being. They were slowly chewing the pie, not really taking delight in the taste, but rather outdo the smack of dirt, sweat and blood that lingered in their mouths. The pie had been baked about two weeks earlier... The memory gave some comfort. It was nice to think about a cozy kitchen, a warm house and beautiful girls with their futile but sincere attempts to cheer them up. Roy had nobody special waiting for him back home unlike his friends. Although, both his comrades' girlfriends saw him as a younger brother and worried for his well-being as much as for their loved ones. That's why they had made the three help them with cooking two weeks earlier - to occupy their tormented minds with some trifle and mundane things. And it had been useful. Two weeks had made the pie stale, but it wasn't the taste the friends sought by eating the dessert. Every bite reminded them that somewhere there was a warless and peaceful life._

_"Well, guys..." Maes addressed them later, when silence became too heavy and the remains of the pie were swallowed. "The day was rough, but we've come through it! You know, all the riots are almost quelled. It's time we cease to see life only in black colors." Roy just huffed at his comrade's optimism that was verging on stupidness. How can I ever look at the world with eyes of a mere man if I was... if I am a soldier - a hound that kills under the order? "Don't give me that look, Roy! Come on! You can always count on our support! I know that one day you'll be standing above everyone, so you'll see that the war never repeats again!"_

_"As to us, we will be standing next to you to see that you do not turn into a bloodlust ruling brat." Sokol was unusually quiet that night, but he had never allowed his inner turmoils to wipe benevolence off his face. "Whatever shameful you have done, you will see that nobody do it in the future." A shadow glided over his handsome, sharp features; his ashen gaze dimmed with pensiveness even though thin lips were holding a small, cordial smile._

_"What's up, Captain? Has somebody stolen your everlasting positive?" Sokol's estrangement hadn't escaped Maes' keen attentiveness. Even Roy was taken aback by his older friend's low spirits. Even his thick ink curls were dangling heavily, as if dispirited. He was always the one to move forward despite all the griefs and regrets, to see the bright side of the darkest hour. "Listen, we've gone through quite a hell there. No point to soak in angst now!"_

_"That is why I plan on making amends." The Captain replied firmly but simply, as if he said some all-known fact. His distant gaze unnerved the two_, _and they exchanged concerned looks. The last time their comrade had the same pensive smile and obscured eyes was when he had openly defied the orders by not only refusing to execute them but by doing a direct opposite. "There was a girl in the house." Sokol's deep voice was deprived of bitterness, sympathy or pity. It took a slow tone of an experienced storyteller. "She was wearing a lovely peachy dress and a garland of dandelions was twining round her head. You must remember that we attacked at night, quietly, so that no one would suspect our advance. I had already visited a few houses. It was easy. Just come up to beds and shoot civilians in their sleep. But she was awake. When I opened the door, she was dancing, blissful and happy. There were no candles. The pale moonlight was the only source of light and it was flooding over her silhouette... She had no idea of the terrors outside. And she had no idea of who was standing at her threshold. When I came in, she didn't stop her dance but swung playfully, gracefully and whispered: "What took you so long?" I was standing there at lost. I had shot many women, children. I had simply blocked off all the thoughts about ethics and morals. That was another case - she did not sleep. She spoke to me. Not to me, but to someone she was waiting for, though it did not matter. So I stood and so she traced circles on the floor with her swift moves. I do not know how long I was motionless. But then everything just stopped. She gazed at me, I gazed at her. And suddenly I was scared, scared that she would realize that I am not a longed-for guest. I did not want to see terror, fear, despair... I pulled the trigger. Her eyes were empty. No fear, no despair, no entreaty. Only blissful ignorance, as if she were asleep. I was there when a panting young man ran in, his look almost insane, full of mad anxiety. He fell next to the girl and lied there. The boy was injured, I could see blood seeping from his thigh. So much blood that her garland was floating over the crimson puddle. I left without looking back."_

_"Sokol, we've gone through the same." Maes concluded with a sigh, taking his glasses off and wiping them. "Don't you remember Roy two weeks ago after he executed those doctors? You told him to stand up and struggle, to move! How about you follow your own advice? There is nothing to seek in the past."_

_The Captain didn't respond, his face didn't change. The smile hadn't left his lips, the eyes were still clouded. If Roy had not known him for many years, he would have called him mad. No, Sokol was sane. There was no doubt that he had something up his sleeve._

_His elder friend stood up at last and headed straightly to the swept open doors of the barn. The night was mourning over the claimed fates and fallen towns, as it was dizzying outside. The two didn't stop their comrade as he made his way into the rain. Something they would regret later._

_"If everything depends on the equivalent exchange, then cannot one's destiny be exchanged for another's..?" That was it. Two friends were left to ponder over the meaningless question as their third comrade disappeared from their life._

_Roy and Maes couldn't find him the next day. They didn't pay it much attention. All in all, the Captain needed to order his thoughts in solitude and there was no need to harass him.  
The following week brought some concern. Groups were formed to search for him or his body. Nobody was sure he had survived the assault.  
A month passed. Neither Sokol, nor his corpse. The ex-Captain was deprived of his position and called a deserter. There was a reward for bringing him to the Military, either dead or alive. Roy spent many sleepless nights burning the posters with his alchemy. Gracia gave a call to Maes. Sokol's beloved had disappeared without a trace.  
It had been a year since there were only two friends instead of three. There was no word of the missing comrade. Two years. Three years. Four, five... Only three people remembered about his existence, hoping deep down to see him again one day_.

"People don't disappear for fifteen years unless they have a reason to!" the Colonel's fist hit the table, causing a bowl of neatly cut apples fall down, and pieces scattered over the kitchen. Maes shrieked, watching as his hard work dotted the floor. Mustang paid his moans no mind, staring intently at Sokol, who hadn't stopped doing his work, not for a moment. "So, tell me, Captain! Why? How was your idea about destinies? Have you achieved anything or were all these years spent worthlessly? Did you not trust me?! Why did you not write to me?! And where the hell is Nalla? Has she dumped you because of your insane beliefs or..." Roy was throwing and throwing questions at his old friend, wishing he would suffocate in them. Ashen eyes did not raise and were focused solely on lemon juice and sliced apples. _What's that?! _Infuriating it was, but Mustang could do nothing to force answers out of Sokol, who had a tender smile on his lips and appeared to hold back from chuckling, as though Roy was just a small and fretful child. Perhaps Jerris indeed saw him as a young and inexperienced boy and his demands seemed childish in the ashen eyes. The ex-Captain was ten years older than him, it was natural that he believed he was wiser and had more composure. Despite all that, the Colonel was determined to dig the truth out. Fed up with Sokol's wordless benevolence, Mustang got ready to grip him and shake the answers out, when his approach was abruptly stopped by a new presence.

Two pairs of eyes gawked at a little girl in the doors, Gracia standing next to her and sending them a deprecative look. "Everyone, but Winry, has arrived. Lieutenant Hawkeye thought that she could hear some commotion in the kitchen, however I reassured her that she was mistaken. Still, I decided to check, just to have no doubts. So, I see that I was correct?" Things were messy enough. What Roy definitely did not need was a stern woman in control. Evidently, Maes and even Sokol stuck to the same beliefs.

"Of course, Gracia, dear. Please, tell the charming lady that there is no reason to worry." As always eloquent, the ex-Captain was quick to take the matter in his hands. His low and deep voice had a desired effect on women; Gracia's features instantly relaxed and softened.

"I am glad to hear that. Boys haven't returned yet. It's good that Major Armstrong brought some apples or there would have been no apple pie. Here, new guests have brought more! Make sure you cut them neatly, Maes!" the hostess gave her husband a stern look before returning to the living room. The three breathed out as the woman left the kitchen without noticing apple pieces scattered all over the floor.

Roy turned his attention to the girl, who was intently watching the scene and piercing everyone in the room with translucent silver eyes. The gaze made the Colonel feel rum. Judging by her height, the girl couldn't be older than eight, however something in her features shouted about maturity. Grey hair and womanly figure only intensified that assumption. She was holding her hands behind the back, as if hiding something, and her smiling pink lips exposed sharp teeth... The girl was smiling, but everything about her depressed Roy. Some melancholy hung around...

"Hello, lovely lady! You must be Nile? Have you met my daughter yet?!" Hughes greeted the girl warmly and cheerfully, though Roy could say that he was affected by the strange aura as well. He casted a suspicious look at Sokol. There was a change on his face. A wave of sympathy collapsed on him out of nowhere as the Colonel watched his friend's expression being torn between affection and aversion. _She was obviously somehow connected to him... Could it be...? _He hadn't formed his thought as the girl replied cheerfully.

"Of course, I have!" The one Maes'd called Nile exclaimed and giggled, covering her mouth with a tiny palm. "Elysia is the cutest girl I've ever met, Mr. ... What's your name again?" She inquired with a shy wink, as if not sure whether it was appropriate.

"Here is Maes Hughes, Nile, my old friend." Sokol replied quietly, avoiding once again every gaze in the room and gluing it on lemon juice. "And here is my other friend..." The ex-Captain made a short pause on the word, emphasizing it. Roy did not miss the hint. No matter how much wrath the Colonel had in store for Jerris, he would remain his friend. Even fifteen long years were powerless to change the fact. "... Roy Mustang."

"Nice to meet you, gentlemen!" Nile made a galant curtsey and gazed at them, as if studying every spot on the faces and remembering it. That was a torture. The Colonel didn't like the way the girl was examining him like an exhibit behind a glass case, but so innocent, sick and shy her eyes appeared to be that he just couldn't pluck up heart and tell her not to look. And so two friends put up with that; Hughes squirming, rubbing his head and smiling stupidly, and Mustang standing like a stone statue.

"Daddy!" Maes' daughter must be an angel to come here and save us! Little Elysia bursted into the kitchen, her plumpy face shining with joy and pleasure. "Look, look! Do you like it?! It's so-o-o beautiful! The other girl gave it to me!" She swirled gleefully, boasting of her new present - a velvet pistachio-colored gown. Mustang had to admit that the new guest had an excellent taste, wondering about the price of such a luxurious gift.

"Hey, I was the one who chose it!" Nile corrected her softly, watching the happy girl contentedly. "I knew you would like it! I always know what people like! So, remember - this is a gift from me, okay, sweetie?" The grey-haired lady gave Elysia a luscious smile, what made Roy cringe, but was evidently fine with Maes' daughter as she squealed with joy, took her hand and pulled the guest to the living room. The girl was almost idolizing the short lady in golden dress.

"I hope you have not forgotten about a present for another person whose birthday it is." Sokol inquired before the girls could disappear behind the doors. Peering through the half-opened door, Nile showed everyone her pearl teeth and a silver eye.

"I was not looking for it. She was." The grey-haired girl replied vaguely and ran softly after Elysia; Roy could hardly hear her light steps.

As soon as the guest had disappeared from their view, the Colonel casted a pointed look at his older friend, reminding him that their previous talk had not been finished. Non of his questions received explanations and, if anything, his questions had been only multiplied now that a strange girl Sokol was acquainted with made an appearance.

"Emm... Ex-captain, I believe you should clear up a few things for us." Hughes was chuckling, but his eyes spoke otherwise as they were dead serious. As Sokol didn't respond right away, Maes sighed and moved his look at annoyed Mustang, who unlike him, did not have a slightest clue about anything. "Well... That's kind of difficult to explain..." He began tiredly, deserving a snort from the Colonel.

"I've figured that much." Hughes only shook his head and glanced expectantly at Jerris. The bald ex-Captain didn't deem it worth to break the silence, so Maes had nothing to do but continue.

"You see, I've got a letter one year ago." He started to collect apple pieces from the floor, maybe because it helped him to gather his thoughts or maybe it was easier to reveal the truth to the friend without looking at his eyes. Mustang was sure that Hughes wasn't the one to run around the bush, but he also knew that Maes hated to disappoint his friends. And... well, Roy was disappointed that both of his comrades had been hiding something from him for a whole year. He tried to push the idea away, however a bitter taste of betrayal remained. "It happened when the Homonculus' attacks suddenly stopped. Remember..? When we didn't know exactly who they were and when I was badly injured by one of them? So, it was a Sokol's letter. He informed me about the Homonculus and assured that they wouldn't trouble Fullmetal for a time being..."

"And just where such confidence comes from?" Suspicion was saturating Roy's tone, not because he suspected Jerris - he knew him better, the ex-captain could not had changed that much - but simply because he was done being silent.

"From the fact that they were hunting me for the last year." The Colonel did not expect Jerris to interfere and involuntary casted a surprised look at him, but he quickly composed himself and replaced his surprise with a frown. Seeing Roy's expression, the ex-Captain chuckled and gave him a knowing smile. _Do you not realize that your benevolent manners irritate me all the more_? He thought exasperatedly, refusing to acknowledge his friendliness. "Please, Roy, do not give me this look. Problems with Homonculus were not the reason I wrote. Actually, they were, but not because I sought help. I have heard about the Fullmetal Alchemist, the youngest State Alchemist ever. When Homonculus confronted me, they mentioned him..."

"Why would they even attack you in the first place?" Patience was slipping away, and Mustang could not wait any longer to get to the core of his story. "If anything, you were believed to go missing. How on earth would they know where to look for you?!"

"I have an answer only for the first question." His lemon juice was long forgotten. Jerris appeared to be completely calm. Mustang would have believed he were, if not for the poor lemon Sokol had been torturing absentmindedly with his nails for the last minute. "They were seeking a confrontation with Edward Elric for the same reason." He was finally aware of the fruit in his hands. Sour juice was seeping down his fingers; mesmerized, Sokol watched drops fall. He whispered then, but in such a matter-of-factly tone, that one would think he was talking about the weather. "The Philosopher Stone."

Roy just gawked, all the things he intended to shout at Jerris escaping the mind as something he hadn't seen coming was suddenly shoved into his face. He couldn't find the connection. Of all the things, the damn stone was the last thing on his mind. _The Fullmetal is looking for another way to create it now. Could it be, I wonder...? _Before Mustang could form an assumption, Jerris, always an astute one, hasted to dispel it, giving a small somewhat guilty smile:

"You give me creeps, Roy, when you have a face like this. Please, before you whisper in a shocked tone the question whether I have created the Philosopher Stone, let me inform you: no, I have not." It was then that his smile finally faded and ashen eyes took on a pensive glint. "But I know its price."

"Human lives." Mustang and Hughes replied in unison, lowering their voices so that no one outside the kitchen could hear them. "That is the reason the Homonculus were after Sokol." Maes added solemnly, the ex-Captain nodded slightly urging him to continue. "They found another person who was desperate to find the stone since Ed had refused to use souls of other people to create it."

"You were?" Roy was not really surprised. To think about it, that made sense: if Sokol had left with an insane idea to learn how to change destinies with alchemy, it was logical to conclude that in the end he would come up with another idea to simply find a source of the omnipotent power - the Philosopher Stone. Surely, he was desperate to find it then. Slowly, piece by piece, the whole image of the situation was becoming apparent... And then Sokol just had to answer Roy's presumed rhetorical question and break an intricate mosaic to a pile of wrong assumptions and irrelevant facts.

"Not were. I am." The ex-Captain corrected without a shade of commotion. "It has nothing to do with my destiny theory, though. Not directly. My research failed, unfortunately, and I have no intention of achieving success in it by the Stone's means." His ambiguous explanations were taking its toll on Mustang, but he wouldn't jeopardize his luck, so he forced himself to shut up and listen to anything Sokol could offer. "I have a more personal reason to search for the Stone. The idea of creating the Philosopher Stone hadn't visited my mind once before the Homonculus made their appearance. Believe or not, but they were aware of whom I used to be and claimed they had a recipe of a thing I needed most of all. The Homonculus enlightened me about the secret. The one who called himself Envy carelessly mentioned that Edward Elric was working with the two of you. I knew the moment I heard the recipe that I would't get away with a 'no'. But at the same I finally came up with a solution to my problems - the Stone. I gave a vow to find it. That is why I wrote Maes in the first place."

"Can't remember you being that selfish." Mustang was disgusted. Could it really be the respected Captain, the faithful comrade, the proud man he once knew? "You won't inform us about you being alive, but contact us immediately when you need help?!" Roy's shoulders were trembling with rage, but that time it wasn't hot. It was icy like a winter blizzard. "And you, Maes, would simply allow him to use us and the Fullmetal?"

"Hey! Do you honestly believe I'm a spineless pawn in someone's game?!" Hughes' indignant yell was a comfort... kind of. "Wow, wow, cool down, Colonel! Don't haste to fry your best friends, 'kay? They me be of some use!" Maes laughed, however Mustang did not feel like being sarcastic. His head was just exploding with incomprehensible stuff and he hated the feeling to an extent he was ready to burn his own temple off.

"Please, Roy. Do not tell me you have forgotten our oath?" The thing was that Sokol had never had malicious, lopsided or smug smiles in his arsenal. But a slight amusement in his eyes replaced all the mentioned emotions. _How could I forget this embarrassment, you bastard?_

_"I've asked for advice, damnit!" Roy, red as a beet, bawled at dying due to laughing Maes and nonchalant Sokol. "Did you not find it useful?" The latter inquired politely, an innocent look on face. "Give advice and help me aren't the same, idiot! I've never asked to write the damn letter for me!" The young Mustang's hands were itching to draw a transmutation circle and transmute him into something small and pathetic. "It is highly doubtful that you will ever find a girlfriend unless you act first. I figured out that you cannot find right words to write, so I took the burden to write it." The curly replied cooly with an angelic smile. "Never again will I ask you to help me!" Roy realized that it wasn't mature, not at all, but he didn't really care at the moment. "A deal. Neither should I then." Was Sokol's short, but pacificatory reply._

"I needed the Fullmetal Alchemist to do the research for me as I had no opportunity to search for the Stone under the supervision of the Homonculus." Sometimes, in the youth, Roy would envy Sokol's patience and composure. At that moment Mustang was ready to die for the golden patience his friend had, as his slow and monotone manner of speaking was no good for his utterly impatient personality. "Albeit, I created perfect conditions for Edward Elric. With his foes being after another bait, he was free to seek the Philosopher Stone and remain safe and sound. To guarantee his safety, I informed Maes of the Homonculus' moves, so that you could get ready for their attack if something bad happened."

Everything used to be simply unknown. A few minutes of a slow talk had enabled Sokol to make everything extremely complicated and incomprehensible. Roy started to regret they had met the missing ex-Captain. _Damn, it was so much easier when he was supposedly dead_!

"You've given up the idea of changing destinies." Mustang repeated thoughtfully, tasting every word and watching attentively Sokol's behaviour... even though there wasn't much to seek in his features: some guilt, some amusement and his permanent courtesy. "I still don't understand, damn you! Why bother and look for the Stone? What these 'personal problems' exactly are?"

Jerris did not give an answer right away, but the Colonel decided to train his patience and wait for a little bit, hoping that conscious would find its way to his friend's mind. Wherever his conscious was, it must had got lost. Mustang, ignoring Maes' futile attempts to calm him down, got ready to confront the ex-Captain about the question... when an urgent knocking shook the air. Everybody's attention was stolen by the sound, the three jerked their heads to see Gracia making her way down to open the doors. _Well, Captain, you may thank whoever it is there, but our talk is not finished, bastard! _Grumping, Roy followed excited Hughes out of the kitchen to glare at the guest who had unintentionally saved Sokol from spilling his guts out. In fact, it was hardly probable, but Mustang refused to admit it, so all the blame went to the intruder. Sparing Jerris the last murderous and promising look, the Colonel entered the sitting room, evidences of a big and merry party all over the place.

As Roy made his way towards the hall, he noticed the strange grey-haired girl, Nile, waltzing around the room, laughing gently while the guests cheered vigorously. That reminded the Colonel that his 'old friend' had even more questions to answer. A sudden bark interrupted Mustang's musings. _I can swear Riza didn't take the damn dog with her! _Though, turned out that the noise was coming from an unknown creature... it was probably a dog, just too huge and too black. Roy shrugged. Any dog was fine with him as long as it wasn't his Lieutenant's obnoxious puppy. Something had made the animal overexcited; its tail wagging madly and drools falling down from huge jaws as if it bent over a delicious treat.

"Stand still, Present, will you?" A glib voice with a tint of smartness and coolness resonated from the place near the ladder where the dog was stamping. Casting a glance aside, Mustang distinguished a tall figure of another young lady, the one with honey hair and tanned skin, that was hanging around with Jerris and the grey-haired girl._ I should remember to interrogate him about this persona as well_. He remarked darkly as he finally reached the hall. Doors had been opened just seconds before.

There, damp and disheveled, covered in mud, the very personification of the word "miserable", stood the famous Fullmetal Alchemist; his brother beside him, looking just a little bit better thanks to the armour. If not for the pissed off expression on his face, the elder Elric could be compared with a cute homeless kitten under the rain.

"Gee, Ed! You look a mess! Never thought apples are that hard to buy!" Maes joked uneasily as his wife gasped in horror and Roy smirked. The brothers couldn't complete even the least dangerous task without getting their asses kicked - alive magnets for troubles.

"Some devil apples grow in gardens today, Fullmetal." Smugness smeared over his face, the Colonel made a witty remark, impatiently waiting for the boy's frantic and pathetic excuses. That was exactly what Roy needed to cheer him up after the devastating conversation with the old friend.

However, the yell never came. Instead of an expected ranting, Mustang heard a loud screech. The Elric brothers, struck dumb with their pants scared off, stared agape, but the awed, round eyes were focused on neither the host nor the hostess. The Colonel guessed with a bite of vexation that his smart replica had passed the Fullmetal's ears unnoticed. Raising a trembling and accusing finger at something behind Hughes, the elder brother growled a short, but so meaningful, full of terror, wrath and irritation word: "You!"

Following the direction his index finger showed, Mustang questioningly raised a brow. The young lady with the gigantic black hound free-easily leapt against the ladder's hand-rail; indifferent but perky almonds examining the intent glares of the Elrics.

_What's the big deal, anyway?_

**A/N:**

Thanks again to those who reviewed) Reviews are one of the most efficient antidotes against laziness)) Really, they do make authors want to write.  
So, the introduction is finally over, the fun begins now. All the OCs are in the story. To make it clear, there are only three. I intentionally don't write from their POVs. Only canon characters. It is Ed for the most part, though others appear as well. Don't want to pester you too much with my characters ;)  
Don't be lazy like me, it isn't healthy - honestly! Drop a review and make another person happy.


	4. Chapter 4: Of Bones and Feathers

**The Carnival of Dolls**

_by SparklyLarry_

_Disclaimer_:_ I don't own FMA. Why? Hm... Don't know, I've never pondered over it..._

Chapter three

**Of Bones and Feathers**

_They are absolutely useless, unless you believe in the power of their intimidating and florid attire._

Old books had a nice thing about them: their pages kept a pleasant scent of antiquity and maintained the peaceful atmosphere that wasn't easy to find anywhere in Amestris. Even dust was reverent - it embodied the spirit of time and wisdom. Thick skin covers were soft to touch and could calm down the most irascible person in a matter of minutes. The youngest State Alchemist was acquainted with these feelings and took great pleasure in stroking ancient paper and reading intricately written words, memorizing every symbol. Libraries were like sanctuaries to him, a place where he could seem knowledge, advice and, most importantly, hope. On the day of his seventeenth birthday a small room, meant for storing various documents and family books, once again proved to be an indispensable refuge. Piles of alchemy manuals, historical chronicles and numerous unknown scrolls concealed a huddled figure of Edward Elric, who held his breath and watched nervously the ground beneath. The bookshelf he was occupying wasn't very wide but, fortunately, was high enough to hide him from a certain monster, at least for a time being. Optimistic he was, the young alchemist even hoped that his scent would be also outdone by the odour of paper and dust. That was really too naive to be true. The malicious growl echoed through the small and cozy Hughes' library, telling Ed that his secret position was blown up. Damnit! Is your nose super sensitive or something, freak?! He coursed as panic seeped into him and creeps ran down his spine. A long shadow slipped into the room, falling dramatically over the shelf where the Fullmetal Alchemist had found a temporary sanctuary. The only way out from the library was now blocked by a massive body of the raven-black hound with a somewhat lovely red ribbon instead of a collar. It confidently walked to the shelf; pride and complacency distinguishable in every step, and sat right under it, boring holes in a crooked Ed with its dark blue button-eyes.

"Brother...? You're here?" Alphonse's concerned voice was a huge relief, so the elder Elric shouted vigorously. He was just at the brim of tears of happiness. The damn dog had begun chase him soon after the second encounter. It was probably the first birthday present he would have given up anything to get rid of it.

"Al!" His happy shriek made the beast snarl, and Ed smirked in triumph, glad he had managed to annoy the shaggy abuser. "Thank goodness... Take the devilish creature away! I am done sitting here all my birthday party long!"

"Urg... Sure, Brother!" Al appeared at the threshold of the library almost immediately, casting a dumbstruck glance at the scene. Failing to see anything that shocking, Ed took into his surroundings again and was also astonished to no end to see a pair of teary and round pappy-eyes. "Brother! You can't be that callous! How can I possibly take away this lovely creature?"

"Don't be fooled by its pretty-eyes, dammit it!" Frustration hit him hard. _No way Al will bye this act_! However, it seemed exactly like that... The dog pressed its pointy ears back and whined faintly - just a heartbreaking scene that produced a desirable effect on credulous Alphonse, who ignored Ed's statement and bent down to stroke the "black angel". "Okay... Can you at least pet it long enough for me to change my hiding place!?"

"I doubt it will do you any good." Both brothers tensed as a sweet voice rustled over the room; a quite laughter broke a short but strained silence that had followed the words. "I do not know this dog very well, however I am positive that it has a flawless scent."

"Just the hell you are here?!" The elder Elric felt somehow badly the moment he yelled at the grey-haired girl. A bit too lately he became aware of her sickly appearance and was actually afraid she would fall down because of his screaming. The child did flinch, but there was no faint Ed dreaded, so he sighed with relief. Though, the next second his eye was twitching again as he remembered the reason he had been rude to her in the first place.

"Please, do not be too cross with me!" The girl murmured with a cute smile and scary empty eyes glued to his. As the last time, that silver stare unnerved him greatly, albeit it weren't only eyes any more, but her entrancing tranquil voice as well. Edward thought he heard guilty there, however he was the one who felt the heaviness of blame on his shoulders. "Let me apologize. I am truly very sorry, Ed!" _Damn, how does she do it_? The young alchemist cursed as scarlet tinged his cheeks. Now her words made him despise himself for being an abusive jerk. The most interesting thing was that the guest didn't sound extremely guilty or remorseful... just in a very ingratiatory manner. "It never crossed my mind that you will be out in the market. Moreover, I wasn't told that I'm going to meet the Fullmetal Alchemist himself! How unthoughtful I was to not recognize you, Ed!"

"That's fine... I guess." The elder Elric faced the problem of finding right and appropriate words to talk to the girl. Her polite and simultaneously excessively familiar manners put him out of countenance and discouraged. _She talks to me as if we are childhood buddies and I don't even now her name_! He exchanged uneasy looks with Al, who was embarrassed even more.

"Really? Oh, that's a relief! I feel much better now that I'm sure you don't hold a grudge!" She exclaimed cheerfully, her voice resembling a tiny bell, and clapped her little hands. "I shouldn't introduce myself before you ask, should I? Would you, Ed, ask me, please?" She addressed him hopefully but confidently, looking up expectantly at him and blinking innocently.

"Yeah... Sure." It was the first time the young alchemist was grateful for his alive-and-shaggy-present-with-nasty-drools as due to it he was hiding on a high bookshelf - a perfect shadowed havoc that didn't expose his flushed face. "So... What's your name?" Smooth. The thought was evidently ironic. His mumbled question made the girl smile all the more as she showed two straight rows of pearl teeth.

"I am known as Nile Jerris, but, Ed, you certainly can call me Nile if you like my name. It is pretty, isn't it?" Edward didn't really like ceremonies, however the girl's straightforward inquiries went a bit beyond the borders. "When I was small I wanted to be renamed so that my name would be Alfonsa. You are so lucky, Al, to have such a beautiful name!" Nile laughed softly, looking playfully at the younger Elric who would have turned red if not for his suit of armour. "Don't be dispirited, Ed! Your name is pretty nice, too. Just don't forget it!"

"Yeah, right... Thanks." There wasn't really much he could reply, his brother had the same issue with compliments. If not for his armour, Alphonse would have turned into a big tomato. His brother laughed uneasily and muttered something about his name not being all that 'cute', though Nile's attention had already left him and was drawn to the elder sibling. Her intent gaze seemed to cut the dimness of the room, so even shadows stopped to appear concealing; panic started to consume Ed. He had hid from the hound only to be exposed to the weird girl. Suddenly, Al gasped in astonishment.

"Nile Jerris! Are you the daughter of..." the younger Elric exclaimed, but was interrupted by the girl, who ended his question instead of him.

"Sokol Jerris?" She made a small curtsey and put a curly grey strand behind her little round ear. "I am not exactly his image, am I? However, you are right, Al, because I surely am!" Then Nile dived into another bow and blurted; her face was blushful, but silver eyes never ceased to be self-assured. "Will you, please, invite me for a dance, Ed? I've always wanted to dance with you! I've no doubts it is going to be the most amazing dance in our lives!" Without waiting for a reply from dumbfounded brothers, Nile started to waltz away, humming something quietly.

"Wait!" Finding his voice, Edward cried after her, hoping that she wouldn't recognize embarrassment in his tone. "I kind of have a problem with a da-..." He snubbed himself as his opinion about the dog was just about splashing out of him, and it was from flattering. Nile seemed too vulnerable and sensitive to listen to his complains about her present, so the young alchemist gulped down all the words he could describe the beast with (to its great pleasure) and corrected himself. " ...er, with the dog. No way I can make it to the sitting room in one peace!"

"Don't worry, Ed! I'll call her and she will take care of it!" Looking at him over her tiny shoulder, the girl chuckled lightly and disappeared behind the door, leaving perplexed brothers alone with the satisfied beast.

Edward didn't take his apprehensive glare away from the raven-black creature, in its turn the dog stared at him with an unwinking look. A silent fight. Noting it, Alphonse was about to recoil from Ed's present, but the hound suddenly shot him such a threatening gaze, that he shuddered, dreading to move the hand away. Satisfied that Al continued to stroke, the dog licked its muzzle and continued to watch the brothers. _Damn dog...! Quit starring! _The Fullmetal Alchemist ordered inwardly, but,of course, achieved no success. He repeated it aloud, but the hound was immune to its new master. If animals could smile, there would have been a malicious smirk all over the muzzle. The beast certainly enjoyed the way it was controlling the all-mighty alchemist and his brother and did not plan on stopping.

Somebody's steps, not as light as Nile's, could be heard from the hall, and a minute later another presence made it into the library. Edward's frown increased significantly, his left brow started to itch when his smoldering amber eyes met the almond ones; an odd mixture of indifference, amusement and smugness boiling there. _Don't wanna know what the hell you are doing here_! Ed grumbled to himself, for a moment forgetting about the hound and trying to set the young lady on fire with his glare. Whatever defense she had, it coped with his glares pretty well.

"What?! You wanna apologize as well?" Edward mocked, pulling a lopsided grin on his lips and watching her hostilely. There was no response, only a raised brow as if he had said some nonsense and a slight flick of head as the young lady whisked small braids away from her right eye. Ignoring the alchemist all together, she confidently came up to the hound despite its threatening growl. Ed hadn't noticed before, but there was a bandage on the girl's arm right under her elbow - the thing that hadn't been there during their first meeting. He couldn't refrain from smirking, malicious thoughts invading his mind. It seems that handling my gift was quite a challenge!

"Give it a break, Present, will you?" That wasn't an order, not really. It sounded more like a lazy request. The dog did as much as snorted - it didn't move, not for an inch and continued to stare at Ed, insisting on the younger brother stroking behind its ears. "Come on, let the kid take breath." It was a kick to Edward's ego, something that annoyed and infuriated him.

"Whom do you think you call 'kid', old hag?!" Actually, she wasn't that old to be called a hag. Far from it. The young alchemist wasn't sure about her age, but the lady must have been around her twenties, judging by her height and figure. Nevermind, she had insulted him on his seventeenth birthday by calling him a kid, so it was fair if he addressed her as a hag. _Equal exchange, nothing personal!_

The black devil decided that it liked the argument, so the animal made a few steps away from Al and the bookshelf, sitting down next to the library's entrance and watching the siblings tauntingly. The younger Elric sighed with relief, but the elder took the challenge the beast had thrown. _You think I don't have enough guts to pass you?! Watch me, shaggy brat! _Courageously jumping down from his sanctuary, Edward turned his automail into a dagger and pointed it at the dog. The move seemed to have a right effect on the hound as it pressed ears back and stepped aside, allowing shadows to partly engulf the body as if defending it from the armed master. Encouraged with the small victory, the young alchemist allowed a wide grin take place on his face as he called Alphonse to follow him out of the room. A frown replaced his smug expression as a nonchalant remark was thrown at his back.

"Impressive." The word was said in a dull monotone, but the implied irony was as clear as a winter sky. Edward stopped, blocking out Al's quite appeasing statements. The young alchemist had missed his chance to confront the obnoxious lady during their second meet due to the stupid dog. It rushed to him before he had even shrugged off his dirty cloak and before he'd gotten the chance to accuse the girl in front of everyone. She was quite a lucky girl, getting away that easily! Not that Ed planned on sneaking on being fooled by her - that would ruin his reputation for good. Never would he admit that some freak made fools of him and his brother! Although, the elder Elric had intended on saying something just to alert others. Now was the time to face her in a wordy duel. Or, maybe, not that wordy...

"Sarcasm is your thing, I see." Edward uttered menacingly, a crooked smirk promising nothing flattering. He watched the girl intently, trying to see any breach in her mask of imperturbability and smugness. Still, her face didn't betray anything as she simply shrugged. Ed waited for her to say something else, but she remained wordless. While he was getting agitated in the prolonged silence, the girl seemed completely fine with it and was somewhat curiously examining his features. "Well?! Nothing to add?! You were pretty talkative back there in the market!" He cried in frustration, too exasperated with two expressionless but nonetheless mocking faces: one belonging to the saucy lady, another to the devilish dog. "Damnit! Say something already! Is she numb or something?!" now that frustration and annoyance united to smash him, Edward gave up trying to talk to the freakish lady and defeatedly addressed his brother. He was sure he was an epitome of pettiness again, but there wasn't much to do. The surprise it was when instead of Al's uneasy voice came the girl's husky words.

"She is." So short the reply was that the siblings stood in stupor for a moment, gathering their wits about the answer and blinking confusingly at each other. Edward was the first to come to his senses, so he shook his head and stared incredulously at the lady; her mouth a straight line. However, almond eyes did give an image of what was going in her head. Right then, Ed was pretty sure, she was laughing boisterously and making fun of him. That annoying sparkling in her gaze was getting on the young alchemist's nerves, but what was worse he could do nothing against it.

"Urg! Well, you definitely do not get my forgiveness!" Grudging, Edward grabbed Al's arm and pulled him forward, shutting the door behind them and leaving the damn dog and the damn lady in the library. _Maybe they'll eat each other or something_? He smirked, tramping away impatiently, his brother following him. "She is!" The elder Elric mimicked her resentfully, making faces. "Numb, huh?!" He kept grumbling despite Alphonse's attempts to cheer him up. _First this bold freak! Then this black devil! And now this 'numb' wit! What a company I have on my birthday party! Just peachy! I wonder where this gear-head is? What I need to make the day perfect is a hit with her wench..._

"Come on, Brother! You can't have such a sour expression! It's your birthday!" Alphonse was desperate to make the day brighter and draw an imaginary rainbow of happiness above Ed's head, but the elder Elric would hear nothing of it.

Edward was partly aware of merriment around him; all the guests were involved in different kinds of competitions and contests - their loud shouts and exclaims were accompanied by Elysia's happy laughter and her clapping. At least, somebody had a real holiday and enjoyed it fully. Ed's attention was drawn to an indignant yell that escaped the Colonel; turning his head he noticed Mustang who had been forced to close his eyes with a bandage and paint a thing Elysia named with a brush in his teeth. The sight finally caused the elder Elric to smile faintly; a small chuckle escaped him as he watched Roy drawing the Lieutenant (Hughes' daughter had named Hawkeye). A big square face was depicted on the board... There were very few things that resembled Riza Hawkeye, except for her stern look.

"Daddy's friend is a talented artist!" Edward was taken by surprise as small and soft palms were unexpectedly put into his, and lithe but persistent arms started to lead. Strange it was, there were no signs of irony in the fervent voice, only admiration and laugh. Casting amber gaze down, the young alchemist's eyes met Nile's perfect smile and shining, bottomless silver wells, which could possibly drawn anyone in their depths. "He was quiet sure that you were his son!" Her tittering made him light-headed and left his thoughts at ease. Irritation was gradually slacking its grasp on Ed and evaporating slowly. "Surely, you won't object to your brother stealing my dance, will you, Al?" It was still a mystery for the young alchemist how the grey-haired girl managed to mix timidity with confidence - two opposite tones - in a flawless compound. That was definitely beyond the rules of alchemy.

"Sure..." Alphonse sounded uncertain and wanted to add something else, but Nile had already led Ed away with as much as a sweet smile and a wink of eye for the younger Elric. "Guess, I will be just sitting here..." he mumbled, but the elder brother could hardly make his words out because of all the uproar in the living-room. Nile took him to the other side of the room and started to waltz around the long table that was empty for the moment as the guests had left it to participate in different contests.

"So! How was your birthday so far?" The girl inquired, distracting Ed and causing him to take a false step. Muttering curses, the young alchemist gave Nile an askance glance, but she didn't seem to notice and just waited for his answer, smiling innocently. He gave a cough to conceal his embarrassment and lied, avoiding the translucent eyes and focusing on a lone figure at the table.

"Fine." _Terrible. Man, I'm becoming a hopeless pessimist_! But surely he wouldn't confess to having an awful day, meeting even more awful people (who, by the way, were related to her in some way) or feeling like crap and receiving a barking-ready-to-gorge-him-on-the-spot gift on his birthday.

"Good!" Nile chirped, raising both hands and making a graceful twirl; Ed clumsy stepping aside to give her enough space. As the girl finished the move, she fell back into his arms like a tiny bird and, smiling shyly, urged on continuing the dance. Music was muffled by loud cheers and exclamations, though Nile wasn't discouraged, her morbidly pale face so adorable that Edward just couldn't muster it up to refuse and he had to comply. "What presents did you get?" The young alchemist believed that it wasn't her intention to make him uncomfortable, but new questions did nothing to improve his mood.

"A fairy tale." He replied reluctantly, remembering the damn book Hughes insisted on reading as it was his daughter's favourite one. And, according to Maes, his friends' as well, including the Colonel. "Well, actually, that's a weapon against Mustang's ego." That was the only good thing about the tale. All in all, it was worth keeping, just to annoy Roy.

"That's fantastic! What's it about?" Innocent and helpless Nile appeared, her inquiries were a pain. Ed sighed impatiently. There was something about her that forced him to answer; he could not simply ignore the girl as if her quite voce was nothing but a wind. Whatever power Nile had, it was enough to make him listen to her.

"Some nonsense about nature, I guess." He tried to avoid details, so that Sokol's daughter wouldn't become to interested in the plot and wouldn't force him to speak about that rubbish for hours. "You know, talking fire and water, animals... Guh, a real crap if you ask..." But, of course, his hopes were broken into smithereens.

"That's the Petrol's story, isn't it?" Nile recognized the book right away; Ed's shoulders going down. _Some popular crap it must be_. He grumbled, pondering over ways he could destroy the tale... Thoughts of that kind were welcomed. "Dad used to read it to me, saying it's pretty instructive!" He too?! Oh, right... Jerris is Mustang's and Hughes' friend. Of course, he would read that rubbish as well!

"Would you like to get this book?" A perfect idea formed in his mind, so Ed pulled on the most pleasant smile he had ever had in her presence, pretending all selfless and helpful. "If you wish, I can give it to you. A girl of your age must love it!" Coming up with a decent excuse, he claimed quickly.

"What's wrong with your age?" Nile smiled sweetly, somewhat amused by his statement, but not elaborating. The elder Elric blinked, not sure how to explain himself without offending the little lady. No girl appreciates being called "small"! He remembered 'small Winry' yelling at him when the brothers had made a serious mistake by calling her 'a little girl'. Boy, was she pissed off... _I thought she would kill both of us_! Not wanting to repeat his misstep, the young alchemist decided to approach the topic cautiously.

"Mmm... It's a genre for children of your age. You must find it more... exciting!" He came up with a neutral argument. He kind of expected her to chirp with joy and leap on one leg around him like a happy child she was. What Ed did not anticipate was to see her giggling as if he had said a really flattering compliment, even her cheeks turned lovely pink.

"Aww... Ed, you are such a gentleman! We girls do like when we look younger than we actually are!" Her words were like sugar, but it wasn't the case he raised his brows confusedly. "You're so adorable! Do you know that a surprised expression suits you very much?" Tittering, Nile lifted up her left hand and closed his eyes with two thin fingers. "Now you're just like a sleeping doll!"

"Hey, wait a sec!" The young alchemist once again was drowning in things he didn't understand, and that feeling was extremely annoying. Stopping abruptly, he opened his eyes and tried to free himself from the girl's embrace, however lissome hands trammeled him again, and Ed was too busy with figuring stuff out to fight against it. "How old are you, anyway?" He blurted out, not paying a damn that the question was far from tactful.

"Ed! That's not what you ask a girl during your first dance with her!" The elder Elric's frustration knew no end as instead of a short and clear answer he received a reprimanding, although mocking, look. _Man, is that a family trait to runaround or something?! And here I thought she is the most sensible of all the new acquaintances! Just like her bald daddy..._

"She is fifteen." Edward shrieked and leaped in surprise as a familiar monotone made a nonchalant remark right behind his back. Spinning around, he faced an audacious high ponytail of thick blonde hair; wavy locks varying from light sandy color to dark honey tints, though for the most part her hair was of deep wheaten hues and bristled like tiny feathers. A deep frown erupted Ed's forehead like a blinding lightning did a night sky. The black beast was nowhere to be seen, but the young alchemist could feel his scoffing gaze with his skin. It appeared that these two, a smug blonde and a shaggy devil, united against the poor guy who just happened to have a birthday that day.

"Oh, why would you ruin all the fun?!" Nile pouted, and Edward for the first time saw a shade of enmity on her pretty round face, even silver coins of her eyes seemed to darken a little. The other girl, however, wasn't perturbed, not for a bit, and continued to sit at the table with a steaming cup of something and her back facing them. "Go and find some activity to amuse yourself!"

"And quit being sarcastic, freak!" The Fullmetal Alchemist added spitefully, noting that he hadn't ever called people freaks in one day so much. Nile made her best to appear not disturbed, but Ed was sure she was pretty agitated, just like him. The other lady surely had a talent for exasperating people. But at least the elder Elric stopped to pay too much attention to his dancing skills or rather lack of them; his thoughts occupied with the infuriating person. His dancing partner tried to lead them away from the table, however a smug and calm voice cut its way through music to their ears despite the distance.

"I've got a nice pastime." She remarked matter-of-factly, measuredly adding spoon after spoon of syrup into her cup but never sipping from it. Edward stopped dancing all together; his fists shaking. The lady lazily looked at him over her shoulder and shrugged, returning to her activity of making a sweet bane. "I am numb, not sarcastic. Remember?"

Nile mustered up a small giggle and pulled Ed away from the room into another, where competitions took place. It was much more crowded there and the air was stuffy from all the activity, but the young alchemist didn't mind it as long as the source of his irritation was out of site. He had a suspicious look round, making sure that another annoying being wasn't there either. Only then did he sighed with relief.

"Very funny." Ed grumbled, plumping into the sofa and closing his eyes; golden bangs covering them. Music was louder there and was hitting ears hard, still it was a balm to his nerves after the perky notes of a certain dull voice. "Fifteen, yeah, sure! She is fifteen."

"Not quite. She is sixteen." Nile corrected eagerly, gracefully sitting down next to him. All her stiffness long forgotten. Ed blinked confusedly at her, but there was no evidence of frustration on her small face; eyes bottomless as ever, pink lips stretched in a cute toothy smile. "It's me who's fifteen." She chirped, taking delight in watching Ed's features get distorted in shock.

"No kidding!" He cried, jumping up from his place and pointing accusingly at the tittering girl. "Damn, you can't be older than ten!" Edward started to doubt that statement as soon as Nile settled back in the fluffy sofa's pillow, laughing boisterously and covering her mouth with both hands. His astonishment was quickly turning into embarrassment, so Ed coughed vigorously in an attempt to conceal it.

"I'm so flattered!" The girl repeated, obviously melting in joy. Her grey curls were jumping from laughter in sync with narrow shoulders. "I wish that didn't change with coming years. I'd love to look always fresh and young! You agree? I hope you do, because she never agrees with anything I say!"

The young alchemist wasn't given a chance to answer the first question as Nile's emotions took the best of her and her talking was too excited to wait for a reply. As she complained, Ed gave her a puzzled look, and the girl exhaustedly waved towards the sitting room, sighing dramatically. They could still see a free and easy figure with a steaming cup in her left hand, another huge form had joined the young lady and sat next to her. There could be no mistake that a giant metal rigid back and clumsy fidgeting hands belonged to the younger Elric. _How on Earth did Al get into a conversation with her?_

"Anyway, who is that girl?" It hadn't occurred to him before, but Edward didn't even know the lady's name or much about her in general, only that she was hanging out with Sokol and Nile, was the freakiest, the most annoying of the three and one hell of a silent sadist. "How comes she is stuck with you two?"

"Daddy adopted her when I was six, soon after mum's death." The girl explained simply, tapping her lower lip with an index finger. "Dad says he found her somewhere in the streets and couldn't help but take her home." A giggle escaped her mouth. "She resembled a homeless kitten out there in the rain, that's for sure!" Edward felt somewhat at loss; on the one hand it was kind of appropriate to offer his condolences or say something like "I'm sorry about your mother." All in all, he was the person who did understand the feeling of grief... But on the other hand, Nile's cheerful voice suggested that her mum's death didn't affect her too badly... _Maybe she has learnt to live with it, so the realization doesn't hurt too much_. After a bit of thought Ed decided to avoid the subject not to disturb old, possibly not completely healed, wounds.

"So, you two are... Like sisters?" the young alchemist inquired good-naturedly, finding his assumption very likely, considering the fact that they had spent the most part of their lives living together in one family.

"We are not." Nile replied brusquely, however a pretty smile was in place and she didn't appear bothered by that question, so Edward risked another one, leaning against the sofa's arm and trying to sound matter-of-factly. In reality, all these vague answers were getting on him, and his curiosity craved for more information.

"Well... I mean, you're step-sisters... Right?" He had known the answer before she responded. The girl's slightly knitted dark-grey brows were a good indication of her discontent, even though her light tone didn't betray it. "Urg... Half-sisters?.." Edward tried again. Luck just wasn't on his side that day.

"We are not." She repeated sweetly, but something in that voice definitely had a sour taste. "She never calls Daddy like I do and refers to him as 'sir' and that's it." Nile elaborated, finding her statement quite amusing and confusing Ed even more. _Great! Now I'm having a headache_. But before he could ask anything else, the young alchemist felt his back being burnt by a pair of starving eyes. Without turning around, he quickly transmuted his automail into a dagger and grinned maliciously. The nasty feeling disappeared instantly as if someone had put out the flame behind him.

"Nothing to say, brat?!" The elder Elric challenged the seemingly empty corner, his weapon reflecting the light threateningly. A low but defeated growl was his answer, and Ed smirked smugly, showing his automail to the emptiness in triumph. "Ha! Should know who's the master here, shaggy beast! What's its name, by the way?" He wondered, nodding towards the dim place where the giant hound was hiding and waiting in the ambush.

"No idea!" Nile shrugged and straightened, holding hands crossed on her laps. "It's not my gift, actually... You should ask her, she might know!" _No, she does not! _Edward creaked his teeth, remembering the way the tall girl got the beast. "Please, accept my apologies! I must have been more responsible and bought a present for you myself!"

"Hey, that's fine..." The girl's face took such a guilty expression that everything shrank inside Ed; in front of him once again was sitting a sick, fragile girl; her skinny hands shaking; cheeks sunken and colorless. He was ready to say any comforting nonsense only to make her feel better. "Al always dreamed about having a pet... I guess..." _Even a two-faced, scary, slobbery creature like this..! _He grumbled inwardly, but, of course, the alchemist held his thoughts to himself.

"Young Elric." A polite address interrupted their conversation, and Ed casted his look aside, settling it on the contrasting trio. The three stood in line, two of them having their hands in the pockets, the Colonel had crisscrossed his on the chest. Jerris, the one who called the Fullmetal Alchemist, held a constant benevolent smile; Hughes' expression was impossible to read and Mustang was just frowning. Edward was kind of unnerved by such an affective approach, though he quickly transmuted his automail back to normal and poked hands into the pockets; looking all cool and placid-faced. Every of the three was towering above him like a freaky old pine above a pitiful ant... an involuntary comparison didn't go well with him. Gulping down a pulsing irritation, Edward straightened a bit, trying to seem taller than he actually was. Not that the act made any difference, but still...

"What's that?" He added some indifference into his reply to conceal anxiety Ed couldn't explain. Something just didn't feel right about that sudden approach. The fact that Maes wasn't hopping around his little daughter on the day of her birthday was a bad sign.

"Have a spare minute to chit-chat with three old men?" Hughes asked in a dead-serious tone, however a crooked smile played on his lips as the Colonel grumbled something about being fresh and juicy. "You wait for us here, Ms. Jerris, all right? The pretty boy won't be away for too long!"

"Hey, how did you...!" Flushed and irritated to no end, Edward was fretting over Maes' obnoxious words and swearing while the other two dragged him under his arms towards Hughes cabinet, that was closed on key the moment all four of them were inside.

The lock clipped ominously. Freed from the men's grasp, the elder Elric span around and burnt the three with a sullen glare of scorching gold. The ex-Captain was the first to surrender the silent fight and raise his hands, addressing Edward with that infuriating guilty smile of his. "I hope you do not mind me making a preposition concerning the Philosopher Stone, young Elric."

Their new acquaintance, the little girl with dim grey hair and hollow eyes, was left alone on the sofa as Edward was taken away by the Colonel and the ex-Captain. Hughes said something humorously to Nile, evidently excusing for the interruption, and quickly disappeared with the others behind the doors. Sudden necessity of the trio to talk to his brother bothered Alphonse to a great extent; he knew that Mustang's face rarely displayed his troubled thoughts, and at that moment the man was almost socking in agitation. Something bad is about to happen, and Brother will be in the centre of the chaos! Unlike him, Sokol's daughter didn't appear to feel any anxiety; she light-heartedly laughed at whatever joke Hughes had told her and made off to other guests, winning their full attention in a matter of several seconds. The younger Elric watched her for a bit, amazed at how easily the girl got along with everyone in the room... However, it didn't escape him that there were not only softness and adoration in the looks the guests gave her. All of them, with no exceptions, liked the little pretty child she was, but besides these warm feelings some eyes held a hue of sympathy. Alphonse himself was one of them. He couldn't help but shudder looking at Nile's scraggy limps and snowy skin that seemed to be colder than a winter day. _How could one not pity her?_ Though, not taking some strange melancholic aura around her into account, the girl was as cheerful and full of life as any other healthy child.

Familiar yelling reached Al's ears and he immediately turned his head to look at the closed door, the source of the sound. Taken alarm, he started to fidget with a white handkerchief. There was no way to tell what's going on in the locked cabinet and that fact made him unresting. A suspicion was that the trio would enlighten his big brother with some shocking news... Something he wouldn't take well, unless Al is there to calm him down. Just when he got ready to stand up and go help his elder sibling, a lazy but reasonable tone stopped him mid-air, once again forcing him to go rigid.

"Do you wonder what is up there?" the tall girl addressed him hoarsely, her head a little bit inclined, so that Alphonse could only see a lower part of her profile; amber braids concealed slant eyes. As the young Elric found it difficult to find the right answer, she continued to speak in a cool unruffled manner, notes of amusement slipping through the tone. "Do not." It was literally the third sentence the lady had told him so far.

_Alphonse sat uneasily at the empty table, not really knowing what to do. The party was in the very heyday; guests happy and careless ignorant of all the troubles for at least a short period. It was a celebration! It was time to let the guards down and relax! And Edward must be the first to do so, but he is too tense! Even though this is his birthday! As to Al, he would have long joined others in different contests, but he couldn't bring himself to leave Ed on his own. Maybe it wasn't the younger sibling's job to keep an eye on the elder brother. However, Alphonse knew better. He would rather suffer from awkwardness and boredom than allow Edward to sunk in distress during his birthday party. So, Al preferred to sit and have a tedious time, but be ready to make his brother a company in case he feels dispirited or exasperated, or something worse..._

_"Care to share a cup of tea?" Came a hoarse plain voice, and Alphonse, taken by surprise, gave a start. His incoherent "sure" wasn't really necessary, as the young tall lady he and his brother had met earlier that day sat down anyway; a cup of tea exhaling dense white steam that curled under her chin and underscored tanned skin. Awkward it was, but the younger Elric couldn't muster up a coherent phrase to start a conversation. The girl was busy watching the steam's dance. Silence, which brought uneasiness to Al and had absolutely no impact on the lady, settled above the table for good fifteen minutes._

"Why not?" Finding his voice, Alphonse inquired cautiously as if it wasn't the young lady sitting next to him but a hunting panther. However, his concern for the brother defeated trepidation, so the younger Elric made a confident face and tried to talk without embarrassment.

"Your brother will tell, won't he?" She shrugged and raised her head a little, looking at him aslant with a slightly raised brow, dipping him into a bucket of scarlet color of confusion. He was afraid to appear stupid after the scene in the market... she was probably already considering them none-too-clever. Edward didn't like others to think he's dull-witted. It was in Al's interest to prevent arguments and a lot of shouting before their happening, so he made his goal to prove to the smug guest that the Elric brothers were to be reckon with.

"Of course, he will! But I want to make sure Edward won't... overreact if he learns something unsettling." Alphonse was determined to hold his ground, so when his voice didn't quaver, he felt proud warming him up like Granny's pies used to. His animation was short-lived though, because the lady's expression hadn't changed for a bit: she was either really indifferent to his attempts to keep his dignity and hadn't even noticed his firm intonation or Al had simply failed to impress her.

"I see." She replied, shifting her sparkling gaze back at the cup. Fingers of her left hand were idly dancing among the streams of silver stream. "The Philosopher Stone is bent to agitate people." Letting the silence rule over them for a moment, the girl mentioned matter-of-factly, fully compelling Al's attention. His eyes widened, boring holes in the lady, albeit she didn't appear troubled.

"The...?" Wonder-struck and dumb for an instant, the younger Elric was not allowed to repeat sacred words - a lazily raised hand stopped him, as the girl shook her head, kind of exasperatedly.

"Don't ask again, you've heard correctly." Her voice was cool with a usual note of smugness, even though a straight line of her mouth made her look morose. "Mr. Jerris must have explained your brother his plans by now. Hence the yelling."

"I guess..." Whatever the ex-Captain's plans were, one mention of the Philosopher Stone was enough to excite Ed. "So... That is the reason you three arrived here? And I thought your... relative just wanted to see his old friends." Al was confused about the relationships between the three guests. He was kind of sure that she was the ex-Captain's daughter, but now that she called him Mr. Jerris Al was at loss. 'Relative' turned out to be an adequate address as the lady didn't mind, and Alphonse decided to continue. "I don't understand. What Mr. Hughes has to do with this? As far as I know, he has no secrets from the Colonel, has he? Why didn't he tell anything to him or us? Is he even aware of these plans?"

Al was afraid she wouldn't answer him; the only part of the girl's face exposed to him was her mouth, and a straight line it was set in did not encourage or gave any optimism. When the lady did reply in a nonchalant manner, Alphonse, though started, heartened up, glad that at least some of his questions would receive an explanation. What he did not anticipate in his most cherished dreams was the fact that the girl started to answer every question, turning down her fingers slowly as she spoke.

"Yes, that is." Was her first answer, the big finger bending. "Maes Hughes was a link between Mr. Jerris and the Central." The index finger went down. "Obviously, he does have some secrets and maybe reasons. My apologies, what were the last questions?" She asked out of the blue, but Al quickly gathered his wits.

"Urg... Why did Mr. Hughes concealed the Truth from us and the Colonel? And does he know what the plans are?" The younger Elric was going to add one more inquiry about these 'plans', elaborations of the kind. However, he decided against the idea not to push his luck too much. To begin with, Al couldn't tell how much longer the girl would remain in a talking mood... For all he knew, her eagerness could come to an end any moment. I should choose my words carefully.

"Can't know for sure. I assume, you and Roy Mustang could not be distracted." The girl shrugged. Al had to squeeze the handkerchief to refrain from asking for more details about the 'distraction part'. Neither he nor Ed had been running any really serious errands for the last year... They were actually spending more time learning stuff about the Philosopher Stone than doing obligations any State Alchemist had to. _How could some piece of information be a distraction?_ That remained a mystery for the younger sibling. "As to the plans, I believe he is aware of their gist." The lady flung another glance at him, taking a note of his fidgeting as Al had no time to hide his nervousness. He started to think that her face was impossible to see completely unless it was blank. If the girl wanted to express some emotion it was either via her mouth or eyes. Now intent almonds were shadowed by braids, but dry lips took it upon themselves to work - a slight smirk played on her mouth. "Just ask: 'What are these plans?' No need to look for eloquent words. I have nothing to do anyway. May very well spend some time speaking with you."

"Okay... So what are these plans?" Such generosity was not expected but very well welcomed, and Alphonse had no intention to lose his chance to learn more. The lady was evidently bored and, though buttoned up she seemed to be, sought some company in the house full of unfamiliar people.

"Look at Nile." Was her short answer, her tone implying that the three words were all the explanation he needed. Noting his perplexed look, or rather guessing about it as she hadn't taken the gaze away from the steam, the lady drawled: "Describe her and make a conclusion."

"Well..." It wasn't difficult - the little girl's standing out appearance was easy to imagine. "She is pale, I mean very-very pale. And skinny, and small, and weak. Her hair is grey as if she is eighty, and her eyes seem to be drained of all colors and life energy. She just resembles a..." Alphonse gasped at his own involuntary but horrific comparison that must never concern a child.

"A lifeless doll, doesn't she?" The lady acutely caught his flow of thoughts and said aloud what he was afraid to. The younger Elric nodded darkly, even more terrifying assumptions evading his mind. "Nile is not what you may think she is, don't fret." Her unruffled voice dispelled Al's suspicions about the little girl being a homonculus, a sigh of relief escaped him. Even his shoulders appeared to relax. "She is simply ill. A weak, sick girl she has been since her birth. You don't assume she just has a unique look for a healthy person, do you?"

"No." Al admitted bitterly, understanding now the unconscious pity and sympathy towards the little girl. "So... Mr. Jerris wants to find the Philosopher Stone to cure Nile..." _That makes sense... She must be really close to him._ He concluded logically. "So, that is what he and his friends explain to the brother now."

The lady shrugged and suddenly extended her arm with a steaming cup to him. "Have a sip?" She offered unpretentiously and placidly, being as close on friendly terms as Al could imagine her to be with a new acquaintance.

Panic overtook the young Elric as he desperately searched for a polite refusal not to offend the lady and not to reject her little sign of amiability. Chuckling nervously and shaking his head frantically (Al realized he was probably looking like a complete dolt, but it was better anyway than revealing an empty suit of armour), Alphonse stammered some excuses. His interlocutress listened disinterestedly to his mumbling, possibly with half an ear, and just shrugged her shoulders once again, drawing back the cup and making a small sip. Pursing her lips slightly, the girl added two more spoons of syrup, stirred the concoction and tasted it again, seemingly content with the result. The younger Elric watched her curiously, the thought that he didn't even know her name visiting him for the first time...

"Why on Earth she thought I'd like that kind of present?!" Al did not even start to ask the lady when an indignant and familiar yell shook the air. The next second the doors of the locked cabinet burst open, his pissed off brother stamped out, settling his burning gaze on the untroubled figure of Alphonse's interlocutress and pointing an accusing finger on her. "The hell you thought the I-'ll-bite-my-new-master-the-moment-I-see-him thing is a desirable gift on birthday?!"

As if on cue, an innocent muzzle of the black dog popped up from the doors. _It must have ambushed the brother in the office_... Al assumed, taking a note of Ed's torn trouser-leg, fortunately the one that covered his automail.

"Don't look a gift horse in the mouth." Came a nonchalant reply, and the girl deliberately looked over him, smoldering almonds sparkling with a lazy taunt. Alphonse could see his brother almost smoking with fury.

"I believe it is my place to have the issue out." The ex-Captain interfered - a peacemaker seemed to be his constant role. "There was a small misunderstanding which caused the girls..." Mr. Jerris was interrupted as Nile sweetly put in:

"Not the girls!" Surely, no one could find her quiet remark rude, so the bald ex-Captain corrected himself compliantly, what brought a lot joy to the short girl as her pink lips bloomed in smile even more and eyes shut in pleasure.

"...which caused Eeset to consider a lovely puppy as a suitable present." Edward snorted, of course, grumbling about the shaggy, dribbling, biting monster being called a 'lovely puppy'. The young lady stood up and nodded in confirmation, not minding the correction. It was the moment that Alphonse at last realized it had been her name Mr. Jerris had mentioned. Her hand fumbled in the right pocket for a sec, than in the left... in the one top-boot, in the other and finally made its way into the small pouch on her waistband. A rumply piece of paper, presumably a letter, was unrolled and read out in a monotone despite the evident cheerfulness of the author.

"... Oh, and don't forget about a present for my little Elysia! You've no idea how adorable she is. I can't wait you meet my lovely daughter and wife. Gracia is as sweet as always! You've no idea what years do to a beloved woman. I swear, she is becoming more and more beautiful with every new day and..." The young lady named Eeset stopped reading, her eyes probably passing a few paragraphs. It did not take a genius to guess whose the letter was. "By the way, a good friend of family has his birthday as well. That's actually as much his birthday party as Elysia's... Well, no, Elysia is a queen of the day, but still. Make sure to make one more present for a short and hot-tempered kid with a blonde braid!" With that read, the girl thrust the letter back into poach and her left hand into the pocket, watching the dumb scene with a raised brow.

There was calm. A bad one. That kind of calm that was followed by a violent storm. Alphonse dreaded to look at the brother and sympathized with Mr. Hughes, who was actually the culprit. To make matters worse, Eeset seemed to get either bored or annoyed with silence and elaborated, looking straight at Ed's dumbfounded ambers with her striking almonds.

"Don't you think a puppy is a fitting present for a little girl?" The lady's placid remark made Alphonse cringe. _Urg... This isn't good_! Behind Ed stood the author of the fatal words, his hand rummaging his hair uneasily, a guilty-goofy smile all over his face.

"... A... girl?" Edward muttered, as if he couldn't believe his ears. And then the explosion happened. "A girl?! You thought I was a girl, damn you?! You must be kidding me! A little girl?!" The elder Elric spattered furiously, though Eeset only shrugged. "Whom do you think you call short, you...!" Edward stopped his yelling abruptly, noticing that the main target of his ire was long gone. Mr. Hughes had 'mysteriously' disappeared from the sight. As well as his two friends. The cabinet's doors were locked once again, suspicious muffled sniggering coming out from there. "Hey! Come here, old bastards!" Al's brother shouted indignantly, trying unsuccessfully to force his way into the room. "Okay, fine! I give you five seconds to open the damn door or I transmute it and...!" The trio seemed to miss his threat as their snigger didn't cease to irritate Edward.

"Please, give them a break!" A honeyed voice jingled like a bell and Al's brother stopped his ranting. Nile had inconspicuously come up to him, and the younger Elric noticed his sibling tensing and swallowing the curses. "Come on, we haven't finished our dance!" And so Ed was dragged away again. Alphonse stood perplexed, not really sure whether he should follow them or wait for the three to open the doors.

"It was nice to meet you, girl." Before Nile and Edward could come out of their earreach, Eeset said in her hoarse voice after them, her face straight and placid, however eyes, as if living their own lives, sheltered a smug expression.

Alphonse watched his brother stop in his tracks and yell back, even though the girl had already turned her back to him and was slowly heading to the opposite side of the room, immune to his wrath: "Damn you, I am a guy, brat!"

"I know." She just raised a hand, as though bidding farewell, ignoring Edward's incoherent words. Nile, smiling innocently and urging him to go, finally dragged him out, and a temporary silence set in, bringing pacific atmosphere Alphonse started to miss. "Offer it to your brother. Should cool him down."

The steaming cup popped up in front of his eyes, and he clumsy grasped it as the girl didn't wait long for him to take it._ I hope a sweet hot tea will cool the brother down_! Alphonse beamed, chuckling at the funny words' combination. Chattering his thanks, he came out the room and looked for Ed and Nile. The two, however, were nowhere to be seen in the sitting room. A black tail, disappearing behind the entrance to the kitchen, caught Al's attention, somebody's whisper could be heard from there. _Was it... Present?_ Alphonse wondered, following the dog. As he got nearer to the kitchen, the younger Elric could clearly hear Nile's ringing and excited voice.

"...Daddy just frets to much about me. Surely, you'll lend a lady a hand of help!" The girl laughed softly, causing even Al, who wasn't fully included into the conversation, eager to help her, whatever that help implied. The following sentence flabbergasted him - Alphonse stood in the kitchen doors, meeting an identical staggered look on his brother's face: "Great! From now on you're my first and only alchemy teacher!"

**A\N:**

All the OCs are finally introduced! (Honestly, no more of them)) I stick to my promise, so no their POVs. Actually, I think it's much more interesting to develop them through other charactres' eyes. Anyway, the introduction is over and the main plot begins)

Thanks again to everyone who reviewed! Hm... There are though many shy people who won't drop a review... And here we thought our world is full of confident and talkative guys))


	5. Chapter 5 (part I): Of Crystal and Glass

**The Carnival of Dolls**

_by SparklyLarry_

_Disclaimer__: I don't own FMA. Just three weird OCs, who are stuck in the FMA world due to me._

Chapter five I

**Of Crystal and Glass**

_Be careful to treat them well. Not only are they sharp when broken, but they also reflect their master's true face. _

Brown shoes were hurriedly floundering over grey puddles, breaking with a splash yellow plates of moons in their numerous reflections. A rhythmical clicking of heels on cobble echoed through the maze of empty streets. Panting, Winry was running down the narrow road, a big box in her arms. Ed's present was not only huge, but also impossibly heavy, as she had thoughtfully included in the gift-box additional tools and a special set of removable parts for different incidents. When the young mechanic was thinking through the contents of her present, she was more concerned about its usefulness rather than weight. So, there Winry was, dragging the heaviest thing in her life.

First, she had had to travel several stations back. Then the girl had wasted time arguing with the head of that station, proving him that she did lose her luggage. Another hour had been spent looking for it. Finally, after she had got her suitcase safe and sound, it turned out that she had missed her train and the next was departing only in four hours.

Great, Winry! She congratulated herself sarcastically, watching time as she was making her way down the street towards the Hughes' house. It's 3 a.m. and I am already present! Wait, no! I haven't even made it to the doors yet! Oh, sure Ed won't be too angry, right? People don't get angry on their birthdays!

Winry was just about to turn left to the next street when a sudden flop broke the night silence. Stopping abruptly, she looked behind her shoulder. There wasn't a passer-by till that moment, and her heels were the only sound in the street. However, the young mechanic did not see a soul in the field of vision. She hated to overreact and become too suspicious, so Winry shrugged the noise off, blaming some wandering cat or... No sooner had the thought touched her mind as a long shadow grew in front of her, blocking the cold moonlight.

Winry gasped from surprise and threw up her head, searching for the figure... A relief washed over her as the girl saw the source of the ominous shadow - a shaggy dog was watching her curiously from the roof, its head with pointy ears craned out, a twisted tail wagging playfully.

"Phh, it's simply a lovely tramp!" Winry chuckled, banging her head with a palm. "And here I thought I heard someone behind my back!"

The young mechanic had just averted her smiling face from the dog, when something small pricked her left shoulder. Wondering, how these annoying mosquitoes made it to the city, the girl brushed the sore place. Another stitch could be felt in the right shoulder-blade - her arm refused to move. Azure eyes widened, Winry blinked at her paralyzed hands, trying to comprehend the happening. But before she could gather her wits, a much more poignant sensation made a blow into her temple.

Gradually, Winry's conception of the world and reality was narrowing down to one giant prickle that was restlessly nagging and tickling her body and mind.

It was almost noiselessly in the house: the rain had finally got bored of pouring its tears, the guests had become tired of lasting dances and competitions and even little happy Elysia was sleepily rubbing her pretty eyes as the fifth birthday had come to an end. The hosts had already taken their princess upstairs, wished her good dreams and left the room. Exhausted from merriment people were slowly leaving the place, smiles and evident pleasure plastered on their faces. A huge pile of presents was proudly towering over the table, on which other huge piles - ones of dirty dishes - were spoiling the view of a usually tidy sitting-room, but Mrs. Hughes was obviously tumbling down with fatigue and decided to clean up the house the next day.

The biggest present was lolling about under Alphonse's feet, rubbing its muzzle upon cold metal and happily waging a shaggy tail. The younger Elric was absentmindedly stroking the black head, looking at the empty street coloured with sticky inks of night; the air humid and fresh after the long shower. Muffled grumbles reached the hound's ears, and its innocent button-eyes flashed maliciously. Al sighed deeply, turning towards the door the sounds were coming from - his and the brother's room, which was generously given them by the Hughes' family.

"Hey, don't worry! Brother is just a bit overwhelmed right now..." As if to prove him wrong, another curse flew past their ears. The dog bared its teeth, as though grinning smugly. "Urg, you're right... He is more than just overwhelmed. Do you think I should go and talk to him?" The hound yawned in reply, showing how much disinterested in Ed's condition it really was. "Oh, come on! My brother is your new master! Show at least some concern!" Dark eyes were gaping at him dully. "Um... Please?" Alphonse tried again, giving the dog a hopeful and timid look only a few people could resist. Unfortunately, his interlocutor was not a person. "Well, that was worth trying." He sighed again, his shoulders falling in defeat. "Thanks, anyway... um... How would the brother name you, I wonder?" Al received the same dull gaze in reply. "Okay, I still have this wonderful tea to calm Ed down! I will go, give it to him and talk everything through! How does it sound?" The hound seemed to muse for a moment before stirring the ears lazily, giving a reluctant agreement. "Just wait here! Oh, and I promise to ask about the name!"

Leaving Present (a temporary name Al, or rather Eeset, came up with) to slumber under the window, Alphonse came up to his room and knocked quietly. No response. Judging by the ruffle inside, Ed hadn't even heard him. Sighing for the hundredth time that night, the younger sibling opened the door and came in, bringing a cooled down cup with him. The room was a mess. Clothes and books were scattered all over the floor, feathers from their pillows were slowly floating through the stuffy air, the contents of their luggage were carelessly dumped in heaps. In the heart of the chaos, sitting like an ancient demon among the ruins of a gloomy temple, was Edward; his eyebrow itching and teeth clenched. There was a book on his laps; he, however, threw it away before Al could even announce his arrival, and another one took its place. The elder brother looked through a few pages and sent it to the same pile, mumbling the word "useless" every time he stretched his automail for the next book.

"Al, how on earth am I supposed to teach a person alchemy, when just the simplest equation of hydrogen and oxygen is completely alien to her! It's so... Pointless!" Edward must had noticed him coming, because he addressed the younger sibling with his nose buried in the book. "Useless!" Another manual joined its fellows in a high heap. "Man, I'm tired!"

"Have this!" Alphonse offered him a cup of tea Eeset had given him. Ed glanced at the concoction skeptically but seeing it was mere tea nodded appreciatively. "Why did you even agree then if you're sure that it is a pointless activity?" After Nile had asked... or rather stated that she was going to have Edward teach her alchemy, his brother had only a few spare moments to express his puzzlement as the trio made its appearance again and literally dragged him back to the cabinet. The three had been finally done with him only four hours later... The elder Elric with steaming ears and clenched fists had stamped away from them, made his way to the room, shut the door angrily, and no one had seen him since then.

"What else can I do, Al?" Edward grumbled, leaning back against the table. "That's a new chance to hook out more about the damn Stone, maybe even the sole one we will ever get... The hell!?" Soothing tea had flown in a beautiful current in front of Al and bursted on the lovely carpet under Ed's bed, soaking the material and causing it to reek nastily. "Where the hell does it come from?! Alphonse Elric! You, a despicable fratricide! I get this muck down your throat the first second you get your body back!" He was on his legs now, ready to punch confused Alphonse really hard. _The Stone? But what does Nile have to do with it?... _Al's thoughts were occupied with absolutely different things, so he missed the hit his brother's automail gave him and flew headlong into the opposite wall; shelves and a monstrous wardrobe falling down on him. "Serves you right! Seriously, Al? Have you forgotten what it takes to brew a decent tea or something?"

"Edward!" The younger brother had to raise his voice to finally silence his sibling. Sometimes his mouth seems to be too big for him! Alphonse snickered inwardly, but surely did not risk to say it aloud. "Does Nile really knows something about the Philosopher Stone?"

"Nile?" Perplexed ambers met identically perplexed ambers. "Damnit, Al! Are you even listening to me! What does Nile have to do with the Stone?! She is pretty much oblivious about the whole plan anyway. This bald guy told me that the freak girl will inform you." Ed said accusingly, and his ire was definitely directed not at him but rather the certain wheaten-headed lady.

"You mean Eeset?" Alphonse decided to try the grounds and make sure... _Oops, bad idea... _His brother's scowl was a valid indication.

"Whatever." He growled, waving his hand as if wishing he had never learnt the name. "I saw you two talking. What, were you having a friendly chit-chat? She was supposed to enlighten you while I was being brainwashed by these three. At least, that's what Baldy says. Hey, you alright?" The elder Elric watched Alphonse closely and asked somewhat concerned and suspiciously. _That is the result of the so-called 'Elric-brothers'-connection'_. Alphonse supposed, desperately trying to come up with a way to brush Ed's attention away from him.

"Of course, I am! Why shouldn't I?" He made his voice as assuring as possible. The younger Elric was fine, he really was. There was just a bitter after-taste, a nagging feeling of resentment. _And here I thought she was really seeking a good company to talk to. _He shook his head furiously. _It's no time to pout over it! There can be no hard-feelings between two hardly acquainted people. Although._.. Al gave his annoyed sibling a doubtful look. _Judging by the brother, he succeeds in making an enemy out of a lady he knows for less than a day._.. He immediately casted away the idea to mention Eeset's cup of tea. Even if the lady sincerely believed the sweet concoction would make Ed feel better, his brother would call the action deliberate anyway.

"Well, do you know what Baldy is up to then?" Edward's eyes were narrowed and he made it clear that he didn't believe Al, not for a bit, though wordlessly agreed to drop the subject for a time being.

"More or less." Al admitted, rubbing his head uneasily and trying to look well-informed to conceal his complete confusion. Everything got muddled up in his mind, and Edward seemed to know that. The elder brother inhaled deeply and, as calmly as an agitated man could, put another book away from his laps. The one turned out to be the lucky - it hadn't joined its paper fellows, but stayed near the alchemist; his metal hand lying on its cover. Alphonse could read the title"The Alchemy Primer", printed in a fancy type common for books for children.

"I think this will do." Edward said conclusively and shifted his attention back to Al. "The bald ex-Captain wants me to teach the freak alchemy. Funny, huh? Dammit, she neither knows nor has any desire to learn even the table of elements! Urg! Da-a-amn..." He growled, hitting his forehead tiredly, as though the move would somehow help him. Alphonse stared at him confusingly. _No need to hide how confused I am! I understand nothing! Isn't it Nile the Brother is going to teach? _The questions made him feel really frustrated. Fortunately, Ed took a note of his absolute perplexity and started to explain: "Jerris has some theory about the way to get the Stone without actually sacrificing anyone." Alphonse gasped at the statement, and Ed nodded darkly. "Yeah, I know, Al. Sounds like a crappy fairy-tale to me too. You know what they answered to me when I said that?" Ed straightened his face and mimicked Mr. Hughes' high-pitched smug voice: "If you had read the book I gave you, you'd have known that the impossible is possible... And blah-blah... However..." Al's brother crossed fingers under his chin, looking thoughtfully into the void. "His theory kind of makes sense. According to him, equivalent exchange goes further than simple give some material and get something of this material equally valuable. In short, he thinks about returning these Homonculus back."

Al stood there dully, eyes wide. If his jaws could move, it would be dropped: "But... What exactly does Mr. Jerris plan to accomplish by this? What does it mean, anyway, to return them back?" Now Alphonse was actually feeling bad for asking so many questions. His brother hadn't completely grasped the concept himself and there he was - stuck with him, explaining the unexplainable.

"I'm not sure, but these Homonculus, artificial people, originate from the Gate, don't they? I guess Sokol wants to push them back." Ed's eyes flashed like candles, some zest alive in the exhausted, but determined, ambers. "What have we given up to create our Homonculus?" He asked dismally, looking at Al seriously. The younger Elric's gaze fixed involuntary on his brother's automail. "So... What should we get back for the return of our Homonculus to the Gate?"

"Do you believe this is possible?" Alphonse whispered, a hope shimmering like a shy firefly. _Can it be that we won't even need the Philosopher Stone?! _That sounded really great, something like a dream. But then he remembered that Eeset told him that Mr. Jerris actually wanted to create it. His brother was probably pondering over the same.

"I dunno, Al." Edward admitted and buried his face in hands in an attempt to hide the identical confusion. "This is all just nonsense, a crazy idea of an insane bald guy, a twaddle of three old people... But that's kind of all we have. There're no other clues." His fists clenched fiercely. "I'll be the biggest fool to miss the chance."

"But, Brother..." Alphonse's burning eyes turned into tiny slits as he mulled over the invaluable Stone and the ex-Captain, whose only daughter resembled a lifeless doll. He quivered at the thought. "Nile is evidently ill. We may get what we've lost by 'giving our Homonculus back', but it will not work in Mr. Jerris' case". The younger Elric hated his words, and even more he hated the truth it contained. Edward's shoulders tensed - he was aware of the fact. "He does need the Philosopher Stone. And so does Nile."

"That's the reason I agreed to teach... her." His brother was simply too stubborn to call Eeset by her name, so Alphonse made sure to correct him... No need to say, that was not a good idea. "Dammit, Al! I don't a pay a damn about the name! I just have to give her some basic knowledge on alchemy, so she will be able to play her role of a person who can create the Philosopher Stone."

"Wait! What?" The younger Elric wanted to take his helmet off to stop the headache... Unfortunately, he was sure that it won't be of much help anyway.

"Urg! Why did she not explained it to you?!" Ed cried angrily, raising his hands as if addressing the ceiling that stayed immune to his questions. "I don't get it completely myself, ok?! Baldy said that the Homonculus have found an ancient altar somewhere in the desert that can be used to create the damn Stone. We just need something... or someone to make them share their knowledge. This somebody happens to be the freak." The last part finally brought him some pleasure. "Well, they are aware that I will create the Stone under no circumstances. Not for them. So, I make the freak look like a professional alchemist, who seeks immortality and is ready to go to any extremes to obtain it. Homonculus will be forced to enlighten our fake alchemist. This plan isn't all pointless, I should give Sokol that much. I just wish he chose somebody else for me to teach. Ma-a-an... It seems there aren't a lot of people he trusts." Ed muttered, though Al noticed with relief that he had somewhat calmed down. _Tea was soothing indeed..._

"So, does it mean we are leaving?" Alphonse wondered, excitement finally taking over him. Moving forward. That was the right mood, the one that fitted Elric brothers.

"Yeap." Ed stretched himself and yawned, sleepiness making his yellow eyes look like molten golden saucers. "Mustang and Hughes wanna take part in the mess to erase Homonculus' existence. Gee, the Colonel is desperate for a chance to get promoted. You know, he's still holding a grudge or something. He must have kicked his proud pretty hard to agree to team up with Baldy again." Ed snickered, pretending not to notice Al's reprimanding gaze. "And I kind of promised to teach Nile as well."

"You did?" Alphonse was not surprised that much. It was enough to remember the girl's glassy round eyes to melt and nod to any whim. The thought that in case they did not succeed in getting the Stone she would be probably doomed and would never be able to do something she wished with all her heart gave Al a shiver.

"Yeah..." Edward replied pacifically, smiling guilty. "Who knows? It may very well be her last dream coming true. Moreover, Nile at least knows pretty much about alchemy. I hope it won't be that tiresome to teach her. Unlike somebody else..." Al's brother just couldn't refrain from making an acid remark. "So, get ready, Al! We are leaving tomorrow morning!"

"Wait, Brother!" The thought struck the younger sibling so late that he was ashamed of his bad consideration for friends. _How could we forget about her?!_ "What about Winry?! She must have arrived long ago! It is about 3 a.m. and she is not here!"

"Yeah, yeah, Al, the idea has already crossed my mind." The brother played cool, but Alphonse knew better. He could tell by Ed's slightly clenched teeth and a bit too indifferent voice that his sibling put on a mask; hurt resting behind it. "You know, I can notice people who don't deem it important enough to show up on my birthday party. I guess Winry is too busy doing some automail for some random old man or something like that..."

"Brother! How can you say that!?" Ed's words were horrible. At that moment Alphonse wanted to lift him by the little blonde braid of his and gave him a good shake for being such a jerk. "You know that Winry can never forget about your birthday or just miss it because of 'some automail'! She must have a reason to miss it!"

"Fine, I'll give her a call tomorrow before we leave." Yawning, Edward stood up and lazily kicked some book out of his way. He shrugged off his dirty from earlier clothes and dropped facedown on his bed. Their journey to the fair and encounter with Mr. Jerris and the girls seemed to happen not that day but long ago. "Good night, Al... There's a big day ahead..." he mumbled sleepily. A few minutes later there was a steady breathing in the room.

Alphonse sighed - he had stopped to count his sighs after the eleventh. Leaving his brother to slumber, the younger Elric as quite as his metal armor allowed made his way to the first floor where the telephone was. Edward was probably just too frustrated to think straight, and that was why he brushed off the fact that Winry hadn't arrived so easily. Having a metal body had its advantages. Immune to fatigue, Al could afford to stay fresh and juicy more, so he took it upon himself to clear up a big misunderstanding. He didn't want his brother and Winry to hold grudges against each other. _I'm just going to figure everything out and talk to the brother tomorrow morning! _He though cheerfully as he dialed the familiar number.

Al was getting agitated as no one picked the phone for good two minutes. But just when his patience was ready to break, a drowsy grumble cut his ear. The younger Elric was shining with happiness and relief, though the grumpy voice should have scared the pants of him and made the poor boy squirm and mutter lame excuses.

"Well, good morning. This is Rockbell's house. It is 3.14 in the morning. You better have a good reason to get the old lady out of her bed at an early hour, or this old lady is going to use such curses your ears are sure to wither and fall." Granny wasn't yelling or shouting. Her grumble was quiet... and intimidating like a big black cloud above the sea before the tempest. Unfitting it was, but Al wanted to smile as he got a clear mental image of sleepy and annoyed Pinako in her old pajamas and slippers.

"Urg, good morning, Granny." Alphonse greeted sheepishly, hoping that he sounded too sweetly to earn a stern telling-off. _That's when you can envy Nile's innocence._ He thought randomly._ I doubt that anyone can raise his voice in her presence... _Surely, Al's nice and honeyed tone did not get through old Mrs. Rockbell.

"Your excuse, boy." Was her unflagging reply, and Alphonse, though still glad and happy, finally squirmed, realizing that it was a problem to come up with a decent explanation. _What should I say?! Oh, that's nothing, Granny! I was just wondering why Winry didn't come, but that's fine! I'll call in the morning! _That sounded more than lame. That sounded suicidally.

"Um... I-I wanted to know how is Winry doing!" He blurted out when the prolonged silence was becoming too strained. There was a silence again. Much heavier that time. And then there was a deep inhalation.

"Alphonse," Pinako's voice was dead serious. "Hold the receiver away for exactly two minutes and a half. You may as well close your ears." So, the nice and sweet Al everybody knew succeeded in getting under Granny's skin. Edward would have been very proud.

"Okay..." The younger Elric put the receiver away from his ears as he was told to. It started to tremble as though ready to explode. Pinako was swearing and swearing hard, judging by the poor device that had to listen to all the yelling. A few minutes later the receiver stopped to jump, and Al took it apprehensively. "Granny..? Are you...?"

"No, Alphonse." The old lady cut short before he could end the question, sounding grumpy but somewhat less scary. The worst was behind. "I'm not fine, because I am ready to drop asleep, but have to stay and talk to the obnoxious boy, who with his brother can live for months without sending a word about themselves and then give a buzz in the middle of the night to make foolish jokes!" Pinako, turned out, hadn't let all the steam out, so there was enough anger left to scold squirmed Al. "Honestly, I did anticipate something like this from your impudent brother. But you, Alphonse! I did not see that coming from you. Now tell me. Is it that difficult to wait a few hours and ask Winry in person how she is since she is sleeping in the next room? Did she and Edward bicker again and are not on speaking terms? I assumed you are mature enough to sort this out without Granny's help and..."

"What do you mean Winry is sleeping in the next room?" Alphonse didn't catch Pinako's last questions as he was struck dumb by one statement. _Is Winry supposed to be here? _A nasty feeling was creeping inside him, causing him to fidget with a wire. There was a short silence, the old lady digesting the words.

"You want to say my granddaughter is not in the next room?" Pinako asked slowly, suspicion clear in her now wide awake voice. As the younger Elric nervously confirmed the said, she dived into another silence. "Okay, Alphonse. Tell me the truth and do not you dare lie or your brother won't be the only one to get my kick." Al gulped and sweated at her threat, muttering something like 'okay' and dreading the next question. One thought evading his mind, giving him no chance to relax. _Winry is not in Resembool! She must be here! _"So, Alphonse... Is Winry in Edward's bedroom now?"

There was no tongue in Al's armour, but if there were, he would have surely choked on it. Instead he was dumbly looking at the receiver. He expected anything but this. As the first wave of shock had gradually receded, embarrassment blossomed out, and Alphonse believed that even his suit of armour was incandescing. Realizing that his silence did nothing to improve the ridiculous assumption, the younger Elric frantically explained, forgetting for a moment his anxiety.

"No-no, Granny! Of course she is not! I mean, we are in Mr. Hughes' house! Not that it would have been any different if we were not..!" _Ugh... Maybe it'll be better if I hold my mouth sealed... figuratively. _Al's jabber was not probably very convincing. Now he was close to panic. There was no way Alphonse would make old Mrs. Rockbell worry over Winry, so telling her she was not there at all wasn't an option. He also could not hope to survive her interrogation that was sure to come in case he didn't come up with something... So, the younger Elric did the only thing he was professionally good at - chatter a few excuses in a nice voice: "Anyway, you're right, that was foolish! Sorry to wake you up! Good night, Granny!" - and quickly dropped the receiver.

_What should I do?!_ The question was throbbing painfully in his helmet, Al staring at the phone at a loss. Of course, he could always walk upstairs and wake the brother up, but then he would be deprived of sleep again... hence irritated and prone to rush, make stupid decisions...

"Were you speaking with your Granny?" Taken by surprise, Alphonse flinched and turned his head to see a miniature figure in a white night-gown, sitting on the hand-rail and dangling her legs idly. The moonlight from the window poured over her grey hair, bestowing lustre upon it. "Did something happen?" Nile inquired innocently, her small smile and pacific expression somehow soothing Al's anxiety.

Alphonse gave her a short nod. He was desperate to share his worry with somebody compassionate and the girl seemed just perfect for the job, so the younger Elric decided to spill the bad news about Winry's disappearance and ask her for a piece of advice whether he should go and tell Ed immediately. Alphonse could not just sit inactively when his friend was somewhere there, probably in trouble or lost. His need to resolve what to do gave him no rest, so he was talking inconsistently, hastily and incongruously, but, surprisingly, Nile was listening to him attentively and appeared to catch the gist.

"But Ed needs to get his beauty-sleep!" The girl was adamant about this; Al discarded the option right away. "There is a lo-o-ong way to the place! And he seemed so tired today! Everyone was so exhausted! No one can stand on his feet." To emphasize her words, Nile yawned, covering her mouth with a small hand. "By the way, how comes you're not dropping with fatigue? You aren't a sleep-walker, are you? Because I suspect that she is. That's creepy! You don't want to sleep, not at all?"

"You are right!" Alphonse exclaimed suddenly, a brilliant idea popping into his mind. _I am the only one who doesn't want and doesn't need to sleep! _"I will go myself and look for Winry. Maybe she just cannot remember the way to the house. I should start from the railway station!" He was so excited that had probably forgotten about the girl, who was patiently waiting for him to address her. "Um... Sorry, I got carried away... Would you, please, tell the brother where I went? And can you give me... a map, maybe? So I can catch up with you later..." _As soon as I find Winry._ He added determinedly.

"Sure!" She chirped readily and jumped down from the railing, landing gracefully at her bare feet like a white ghost; the silver of her hair and paleness of her skin almost merging with the light satin of the night clothes. "I'll mark the place on the map!" With that said, Nile took Mr. Hughes' map of Amestris and neighboring countries from the table with the telephone and made some notes with a pencil. "Here you go!"

"Thank you!" Without a glance at the map, Alphonse took it and ran headlong to the doors. When he was at the threshold, the younger Elric turned round, however, and quickly added. "In case I am not here by the morning, please, make sure the brother go with you and do not wait for me and Winry. Tell him, I will catch up with you, I promise! Persuade him to go!"

Taking Nile's smile for a 'yes', Alphonse rushed forward, splashing through the puddles under the laughing sickle of the yellow moon. The girl murmured something gaily after him, but he couldn't hear her clearly due to his own thoughts, armour's tinkling and night winds.

"She surely will, Al!"

**A/N:**

Wow, this chapter turned out to be too long)) So, I think it's better to divide it into two shorter parts)) Here is the first one!

Thanks to all the reviews! They really can make authors dance and fly (no kidding, I'm ready to fly)) Though, I see there are more people reading! The magic button won't bite you... probably won't... xD


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